Research Director, Inc.: Exclusive February PPM Analysis For New York, L.A., Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas-Ft. Worth

Markets #1-5

The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC., along with our compadres from XTRENDS, are taking you back to a simpler timem a time we fondly refer to as FEBRUARY. As defined by NIELSEN, this era humbly began on 1/30 and came to its fruitful conclusion on 2/26. It was notable for yet another federally mandated three-day weekend, the so-called “big game,” and some impeachment festivities. How these affected radio listening is the subject of our TED talk.

NEW YORK: Guiding Lite
As with the neon lights on Broadway, iHEARTMEDIA AC WLTW (106.7 LITEFM) had its dimmest 6+ share since NOVEMBER (8.0-7.3) though the station still reigned supreme in the vanity demo. SBS Tropical WSKQ (MEGA 97.9) repeated at #2 (6.0-5.9) while the two stations previously tied at #3 dissolved their act. ENTERCOM Classic Hits WCBS-F remained stationary with a solid increase (5.0-5.7). MEDIACO Urban AC WBLS slipped to #4 with a modest gain (5.0-5.4). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WHTZ (Z100) returned at #5 (4.7-4.7). Meanwhile, iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKTU had its best book since JULY (3.9-4.3) to stay at #6. UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary WXNY (X96.3) was up for the seventh straight survey (3.5-4.1) to advance three spaces to #7.

The top three 25-54 stations were the same as before with WLTW leading the way with a small increase. WSKQ was in the place position again with a slight increase and was about a share off the lead. WHTZ was again #3 with a slight decrease. WKTU moved up to #4 – its first appearance in the top five since AUGUST. iHEARTMEDIA Urban WWPR (POWER 105.1) slipped to #5 as it ended a three-book surge. It was tied with WBLS, which remained in place despite a small increase.

For the third book in a row, WSKQ was in double digits 18-34 and led #2 WLTW, which had a modest decline, by over two shares. WKTU stepped up to #3 with its best outing in over a year. The station’s last down book in this demo was in SEPTEMBER. WHTZ slipped to #4 with its fifth straight down survey. WWPR stepped back to #5 with a slight decrease. It was just ahead of MEDIACO Top 40/R WQHT (HOT 97), which remained at #6 but with its best book since NOVEMBER.

WSKQ was up slightly 18-49 to win the demo for the second straight survey. WLTW had its best Frosty-free share since SEPTEMBER to repeat at #2. WWPR was again #3 but ended a strong three-book surge with a small loss. A flat WHTZ was again #4 but was forced to share the moment with WKTU, which stepped up thanks to its fifth straight up book. WQHT repeated at #6 with a slight increase.

LOS ANGELES: More Or Less The Same
The top of the 6+ leader board was relatively unchanged from the previous survey. iHEARTMEDIA AC KOST was #1 for the fourth book in a row (6.5-5.7) while ENTERCOM Classic Hits KRTH (K-EARTH 101) had its fourth straight second-place finish (5.3-5.2). ENTERCOM Urban AC KTWV (94.7 THE WAVE) inched up to #3 with its best outing since AUGUST (4.6-4.7). This forced iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KBIG (104.3 MY FM) to step down to #4 (4.8-4.5). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KIIS had its highest share in exactly one year (4.1-4.4), which allowed the station to take sole possession of fifth place. Its former partner in that space – UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary KLVE (K-LOVE 107.5) – slipped to #7 (4.1-3.8) and was tied with iHEARTMEDIA Talk KFI-A, which moved up from #9 with its best book since AUGUST (3.3-3.8).

Last month four – count ‘em – four stations were tied at #4 25-54. Both SBS Regional Mexican KLAX (97.9 LA RAZA) and KIIS remained in that partnership but settled in at the #1 position. Each station posted its best share in over a year. KRTH was also a part of that quartet and it moved up to #3 where it was tied with a slightly off KOST. KBIG returned about half of last month’s increase, which caused the station to fall from #1 to #5. KLVE slipped three places to #6 with a slight loss. The final member of that previous foursome was ENTERCOM Adult Hits KCBS-F (93.1 JACK FM). It slid to #7 as it surrendered most of last month’s strong increase.

There was all sorts of movement in the 18-34 ranks. KIIS had its best book in over a year to move into first place for the first time since NOVEMBER. This pushed iHEARTMEDIA Urban KRRL (REAL 92.3) – which was off – back to #2. KLAX leapt four spaces to #3 with its highest share in over a year while SBS Spanish AC KXOL (MEGA 96.3FM) advanced seven squares to #4 as it regained all of last month’s rather large share loss. iHEARTMEDIA Alternative KYSR (ALT 98.7) slipped to #5 and was tied with MERUELO Top 40/R KPWR (POWER 106FM), which fell from #3. KBIG was off slightly but that was enough to drop the station to #7.

Once again KIIS had its best book in over a year. This time it was 18-49 and the station rose from #3 to #1. KLAX jumped five spaces to #2 and was a half share off the lead. Previously, on the ratings game, KBIG and KOST were tied at #1. KBIG slipped to #3 while KOST landed at #4 and was tied with a stationary KRTH. KCBS-F was off slightly but still dropped to #7 where it was partnered with KTWV and KRRL.

CHICAGO: Breaking News
This just in … ENTERCOM News WBBM-A had its best 6+ book since MARCH (5.4-5.8). As a result, the station moved up to #1. HUBBARD Hot AC WTMX (101.9 THE MIX) continued its post-Frosty recovery (4.9-5.4) as it advanced three places to #2. HUBBARD Classic Rock WDRV (THE DRIVE 97.1) was idling in neutral at #3 (5.3-5.3). iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WVAZ (V103) held steady at #4 but with its lowest score since JULY (5.2-4.9). iHEARTMEDIA AC WLIT (93.9 LITE FM) ended a three-book stay at #1 (5.5-4.8) as it fell to #5.

WTMX had its best 25-54 book since OCTOBER as it returned to the top spot. Last month’s leader – UNIVISION Regional Mexican WOJO (QUE BUENA 105.1) – stepped back to #2 thanks to a slight decrease. WDRV was also off slightly but remained at #3. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKSC (103.5 KISS FM) gave its best performance in over a year as it rose to #4. CUMULUS Classic Hits WLS-F was off slightly but did not budge from the #5 position.  HUBBARD AC WSHE (SHE 100.3) stepped down to #6 as it lost most of last month’s big increase.

On our last episode, WDRV and WKSC were tied at #3 18-34. That agreement was cancelled as THE DRIVE moved up to #1 with its best share since NOVEMBER and KISS FM stepped up to #2 with its highest mark in over a year. WSHE was the previous leader but it dropped back to #3 and was tied with WTMX. Both stations were off a bit. UNIVISION Spanish Contemporary WVIV (93.5 LATINO MIX) moved up to #5. The station has more than doubled its HOLIDAY share. WOJO had its lowest score since OCTOBER as it stepped down to #6.

For the first time since OCTOBER, WTMX was back on top 18-49. WOJO was off a bit and dropped to #2. WKSC again had its highest share in over a year as it moved up to #3. WSHE and WDRV had been tied at #3. Both stations were off the same amount so they remained tied again – at #4. SBS Regional Mexican WLEY (LA LEY 107.9) made the leap o’ the month as it rose from #14 to #6. It was tied with WBEZ ALLIANCE N/T WBEZ. Both stations had their best books in over a year. WLIT dropped to a tie at #9.

SAN FRANCISCO: Keep Talkin’
As per usual, the top spots 6+ were reserved for stations that refused to play songs for a living. ENTERCOM News KCBS-A was #1 again with its highest reported share in over a year (8.4-8.7). KQED INC. N/T KQED remained a socially distant #2 (7.5-6.6). The top music station was BONNEVILLE AC KOIT, which moved up to #3 with its best Frosty-free total since MARCH (4.1-4.8). BONNEVILLE Top 40/M KMVQ (99.7 NOW) moved up to #4 (4.5-4.4) and was tied with iHEARTMEDIA AC KISQ (98.1 THE BREEZE) (4.3-4.4). ENTERCOM Hot AC KLLC (ALICE @ 97.3) slipped to #6 as it returned most of last month’s big increase (4.7-4.1). CUMULUS Sports KNBR-A suffered through the 49erS fourth-quarter collapse as it slid to #8 (4.8-3.5).

It was quite the month for KOIT as the station posted its best Frosty-free 25-54 share in over a year as it moved back up to #1. KMVQ slipped to #2 with a slight decrease and trailed the leader by the slimmest of margins. KLLC remained at #3 with a slight loss and was joined there by iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/R KMEL, which ended a three-book slide. KQED dropped three places to #5 as it returned a good portion of last month’s big increase. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KYLD (WILD 94.9) was close behind at #6 after landing its largest share since NOVEMBER. KCBS-A was a step behind at #7 as it – again – had its best book in over a year.

The top two 18-34 stations had down books but continued to lead the rest of the field by a wide margin. KMEL repeated at #1 while KMVQ returned at #2. The next closest station was KYLD, which moved up to #3 with its best outing since SEPTEMBER. Still, the station was better than a share behind the leaders. KOIT moved up to #4 with a huge increase while iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KIOI (STAR 101.3) remained at #5 with a slight increase. KQED dropped three places to #6.

The top three stations 18-49 were separated by less than a half share. KOIT rocketed to #1 with a huge increase. KMVQ slipped to #2 with a small loss while KMEL remained at #3 with a slight increase. KYLD advanced to #4 with its best showing since AUGUST while KQED fell to #5. KLLC slipped to #6 with its lowest mark since AUGUST.

DALLAS-FT.WORTH: When Doves Fly
For the second straight survey, SALEM Christian Contemporary KLTY was #1 6+. The station lost last month’s increase (7.4-6.9) as its lead over #2 iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KHKS (106.1 KISS FM) shrank (5.9-6.3). CUMULUS Country KSCS remained at #3 (5.2-5.2) while iHEARTMEDIA AC KDGE (STAR 102.1) moved up to #4 (4.4-4.7). CUMULUS Country KPLX (99.5 THE WOLF) slipped to #5 (4.7-4.6) and was tied with ENTERCOM Classic Hits KLUV (4.4-4.6). iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KDMX (NOW 102.9) ended a steep two-book slide (3.2-4.1) as it advanced five places to #7.

The top three 25-54 stations were in their same places as last month. KHKS was #1 with its best book since OCTOBER. KLTY was off a bit at #2 and was about a share and a half off the lead. KSCS repeated at #3 though it lost a chunk of share. UNIVISION Regional Mexican KLNO (QUE BUENA 94.1) moved up to #4 with a slight increase. KLUV stepped up to #5, also with a slight increase. SERVICE Urban KKDA (K104) slid to #6 and was tied with KDGE. KPLX gave back most of last month’s gain as it fell to a tie at #8. 

A flat KHKS remained a dominant #1 18-34. KSCS moved up to #2 with its best outing in over a year yet was still better than two shares off the pace. KKDA was up for the fourth straight survey but dropped back to #3. KLNO stepped up to #4 with a slight increase. KPLX slipped to #5 with a slight decrease. It was tied with KDMX, which leapt from a tie at #10 with its highest score since JULY.

For the thirteenth time in the last 14 surveys, KHKS was #1 18-49. The station had its best book since NOVEMBER and led #2 KSCS – which was off slightly – by almost two shares. KKDA stepped up to #3 despite a slight decrease and was paired with KLNO, which advanced from #6 with its highest mark since MARCH. KLTY slipped to #5 as it gave back most of last month’s solid increase. KPLX stepped down to #6 with a slight loss.

The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. will now prepare our next missive, which will spotlight the facts as we see them in HOUSTON, WASHINGTON, DC, ATLANTA, PHILADELPHIA, and BOSTON.

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RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC.. is based in ANNAPOLIS, MD. We help radio stations’ programming and sales departments maximize the value of their research. For more information, visit www.ResearchDirectorInc.com, call (410) 295-6619, or e-mail info@ResearchDirectorInc.com or sallan@ResearchDirectorInc.com. 

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