RADIO RATINGS ROUNDUP, January 2025, Part III

February 26, 2025

For those of you just tuning in, here’s where we are. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in cooperation with the masters of the algorithm from XTRENDS – have been doing our normal deep dive into the monthly PPM data. However, this particular survey comes with a twist. We are getting our first look at how the three-minute qualifier has affected the ratings.

In our first two episodes, we saw, as expected, a minimal effect on station shares in the four demographics we cover. We did expect significant PUMM growth in every market, and that is what is occurring. What has come as a surprise is the wide variations in PUMM growth we are seeing from market to market. Will that trend continue with our next batch of contestants? Read on…

The JANUARY survey ran from JANUARY 9^TH through FEBRUARY 5^TH and did feature a long holiday weekend and signaled a return to normal-ish listening patterns in the wake of Santa’s demise. Note that all PUMM changes are book-to-book numbers.

SEATTLE-TACOMA: Back On Top

Santa’s arrival in the market ended a six-book 6+ winning streak for UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON N/T KUOW. The station returned to its more familiar position and opened up a wide lead over the rest of the field (6.7-7.6). Despite landing its lowest number in over a year, iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock KZOK was up to #2 (5.8-5.6). In the aftermath of the big guy’s departure HUBBARD AC KRWM (WARM 106.9) went from first to third (11.3-4.8). The station was #6 last year with a 4.5 share. BONNEVILLE N/T KIRO-F remained at #4 (4.4-4.5), while CLASSIC RADIO Classical KING (CLASSICAL KING FM 95.1) moved up to #5 with its best showing in over a year (3.9-4.4). AUDACY Country KKWF (100.7 THE WOLF) slipped to #6 (4.4-4.3) and was tied with AUDACY Active Rock KISW (THE ROC), which had its first up book since JULY (3.9-4.3). KKWF did add a 0.7 share from its stream. KRWM lost 25.8% of its cume but still led the category (856,100-635,100). The market was up 2.5%. The 6+ market PUMM grew by 20.5%.

The 25-54 chart was completely shaken up this survey. AUDACY Alternative KNDD (107.7 THE END) rose from a tie at #3 to #1 with its best book in over a year. HUBBARD Pop CHR KQMV (MOViN’ 92.5) was also last seen at #3. It stepped up to #2 as it ended a three-book slide. Speaking of the number three, three stations were now tied at that position. KRWM dropped in from its former lofty perch at #1, while AUDACY Hot AC KSWD (EMMA 94.1) was up from #5 with a slight increase. FRIENDS OF KEXP Alternative KEXP completed the triad by arriving from #11 with its best outing for over a year. iHEARTMEDIA Pop CHR KBKS (HITS 106.1) slid from #2 to #6 with its smallest share since APRIL. It was tied with a flat KISW. The 25-54 market PUMM was up 30.4%.

Though KRWM was not able to maintain its presence in the double-digit world, the station had enough left in the tank to capture the 18-34 demo for the fourth straight survey. It had a half-share lead over the three stations stuck at #2. KNDD remained in place with a small increase. KQMV was up from #4 as it bounced back from a down book, while KKWF arrived from #5 with a huge share gain. AUDACY Rhythmic AC KHTP (HOT 103.7) slipped to #5 and was tied with KBKS. iHEARTMEDIA Adult Hits KJAQ (96.5 JACK FM) dropped from a tie at #5 into an arrangement at #8 with KISW. The 18-34 market PUMM was up 17.7%.

KRWM shed more than half its previous 18-49 share but still finished in double figures as it landed in first place for the fourth book in a row. Last survey KKWF lost almost two-thirds of its share. It regained a good portion of that number to move from #4 to #2. KNDD repeated at #3 with a solid share gain. It was paired with KBKS, which dipped from #2 with a small increase. KSWD and KQMV were last seen at #4. Both stations had strong share gains but dropped to #4 and #5, respectively. KJAQ coughed up most of last survey’s share gain as it fell from #4 to #8. It was tied with KHTP, iHEARTMEDIA Classic Hits KJEB (95.7 THE JET) and HUBBARD Country KPNW (98.9 THE BULL). The market’s 18-49 PUMM rose by 28.7%.

MIAMI-FT. LAUDERDALE-HOLLYWOOD: It’s Still Hot

The system may have changed but COX MEDIA Urban AC WHQT (HOT 105) continued to chug along as it extended its long string of #1 6+ books (9.1-8.9). COX MEDIA AC WFEZ (EASY 93.1) stepped up to #2 (5.5-5.8), while AUDACY Classic Hits WMXJ (102.7 THE BEACH) was up to #3 (5.2-5.2). TELEVISAUNIVISION Spanish Contemporary WAMR (AMOR 107.5) went from #5 to #4 (5.1-5.1), while SBS Spanish Contemporary WCMQ (Z92.3) jumped two places to #5 (4.8-4.9). AUDACY AC WLYF (101.5 LITE FM) posted its lowest share in over a year (5.6-4.7) as it fell from #2 to #6. iHEARTMEDIA Spanish Adult Hits WMIA (MAGIC 93.9) slid to #7 as it gave back almost all of last survey’s share increase (5.1-4.5). Thanks to a 16.6% increase, WFEZ was back atop the cume leaderboard (598,100-697,100). The market was up 2.1%. The 6+ market PUMM rose by 23.8%.

In the HOLIDAY book, WFEZ lost a chunk of share as it went from first to third 25-54. The station got a good portion of that lost share back as it moved back up to #1. WMXJ repeated at #2 with a small share loss, while WCMQ advanced four places to #3 with its best book in over a year. A flat WHQT moved up to #4, while iHEARTMEDIA Spanish Contemporary WZTU (TÚ 94.9) leapt from #8 to #5 with its highest score since FEBRUARY. Three stations dropped out of the top five, and two were huddled together at #6. WMIA fell from #1 with its lowest mark in over a year, while COX MEDIA Rhythmic AC WFLC (HITS 97.3) slipped from #4 with its third down book in a row. SBS Spanish Tropical WXDJ (EL ZOL 106.7) halted a three-book surge and dropped from #5 into a tie at #8 with WLYF. The market’s 25-54 PUMM was up 25.4%.

WHQT had its best 18-34 book since JULY as it rose from #3 to #1. TELEVISAUNIVISION Spanish Contemporary WRTO (MIX 98.3) jumped from #6 to #2 with its highest score since FEBRUARY. COX MEDIA Urban Contemporary WEDR (99 JAMZ) was back at #3 with a small increase, while WZTU dropped from a tie at #1 to #4 with a small decrease. iHEARTMEDIA Pop CHR WHYI (Y100) and AUDACY Rhythmic CHR WPOW (POWER96) had been tied at #7. Both stations were flat as they moved in tandem up to #5. They were joined there by WFEZ, which advanced from #11 with its best outing since AUGUST. WLYF fell from the tie at #1 to a tie at #8 with SBS Latino Urban WRMA (RITMO 95.7). WFLC dropped from #3 to #10. It was partnered with iHEARTMEDIA Urban Contemporary WMIB (103.5 THE BEAT) and AUDACY Alternative WSFS (104.3 THE SHARK). The market’s 18-34 PUMM was up 32.8%.

Everybody was shufflin’ in the 18-49 chart. WFEZ stepped up to #1 as it regained some of last survey’s huge share loss. WHQT moved from #5 to #2 with a solid share gain, while WZTU jumped from #7 to #3 with a modest increase. WMIA went from first place to fourth with its smallest share since JULY. WRTO vaulted from #14 to #5 with its third up book in a row. WMXJ and WFLC were last seen at #4 and #5, respectively. Both stations had down books as they landed together at #7. WLYF dropped from #3 into a pairing at #9 with WCMQ. The market’s 18-49 PUMM grew by 24.9%.

PHOENIX: Easy Does It Again

iHEARTMEDIA AC KESZ (99.9 KEZ) continued to roll as the station was in its customary #1 6+ position (16.4-8.1). It was also #1 a year ago with a 9.6 share. HUBBARD Classic Rock KSLX was #2, as usual (5.4-5.6), while iHEARTMEDIA Adult Hits KYOT (95.5 THE MOUNTAIN) advanced from #6 to #3 with its best showing since SEPTEMBER (3.5-4.6). iHEARTMEDIA Country KNIX repeated at #4 (4.3-4.5) and was partnered with HUBBARD Active Rock KUPD (4.1-4.5). MARICOPA COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE Classical KBAQ (KBACH 89.5) ended its 15 minutes of fame. The station fell from #3 to #11 (4.4-3.0). It was there with three other stations: AUDACY Pop CHR KALV (LIVE 101.5) (2.5-3.0), MARICOPA COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE N/T KJZZ (2.7-3.0), and iHEARTMEDIA Pop CHR KZZP (104.7 KISS FM) (2.6-3.0). KESZ was still the cume leader despite a 23.9% decline (1,339,300-1,019,500). The market was up 0.9%. The 6+ market PUMM rose by 26.6%.

KESZ continued to dominate the 25-54 arena. Despite the expected post-HOLIDAY share loss, the station was #1 by about two shares over KUPD, which remained at #2 with a small increase. KYOT rebounded from a down book to move up to #3, while HUBBARD Alternative KDKB (ALT AZ 93.3) dipped to #4, despite landing its largest share since AUGUST. iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KMXP (MIX 96.9) rocketed from #15 to #5 with its best performance in over a year. It was tied with AUDACY Country KMLE, which moved up from #7, also with its highest score in over a year. KNIX slipped to #7 with a slight increase, while KSLX fell five places to #8 with its third down book in a row. It was tied with KALV. The market’s 25-54 PUMM grew by 33.6%.

KUPD was unable to duplicate last survey’s double-digit performance but still moved up to #1 18-34. This ended the seven-book winning string for KESZ, which dipped to #2. KDKB stood alone at #3 as it ended a Santa-induced two-book slide, while KYOT stepped up to #4 with a notable increase. AUDACY Classic Hits KOOL (BIG 94.5) vaulted from #9 to #5 with its, ahem, biggest book since SEPTEMBER. KALV and KMLE were in ties at #3 and at #5, respectively, last survey. The stations joined forces this time but at #6. SIERRA H Rhythmic AC KZCE (101.1 THE BOUNCE) fell from the tie at #5 to #8 and was tied with KMXP, which zoomed up the chart from #19. ZELUS MEDIA Hot AC KMVA (HOT 97.5 & 103.9) dropped from the tie at #5 to #10 where it was paired with KSLX. The market’s 18-34 PUMM was up 43.1%.

What a difference a book makes. Last survey KESZ had an eight-share lead over #2 KUPD in the 18-49 contest. The stations were still #1 and #2, respectively, but the gap narrowed to about a share. KDKB remained at #3 with a small increase, while two stations made bold moves into the top five. KYOT leapt from #13 to #4 as it rebounded from a down book, while KMXP vaulted from #15 to #5 with its highest share in over a year. KMLE and KALV had slight increases but still fell into a tie at #6. The market’s 18-49 PUMM increased by 37.1%.

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DETROIT: Nic Clicks

iHEARTMEDIA AC WNIC had its first down book since AUGUST (18.6-9.2) as it cruised to its third straight 6+ win. Last year it was #2 with a 7.6 share. AUDACY Sports WXYT (97.1 THE TICKET) was down for the fourth book in a row (7.9-7.1) to repeat at #2. The station did add a 2.0 share from the interwebs. AUDACY Classic Hits WOMC rebounded from a down book to repeat at #3 (5.7-6.6). AUDACY News WWJ-A had its best book in over a year (4.9-6.3) as it stepped up to #4. It also picked up a 0.3 share from the stream. iHEARTMEDIA Pop CHR WKQI (CHANNEL 955) dipped to #5 (5.0-5.8). WNIC continued as the cume leader despite a 20.8% decrease (1,332,500-1,055,300). The market was up 1.2%. The market’s 6+ PUMM grew by 14.3%.

WNIC was in double figures and perched atop the 25-54 leaderboard for the third book in a row. WKQI stepped up to #2 as it halted a three-book slide. WXYT slipped to #3 with its least productive outing in over a year, while AUDACY Country WYCD rebounded from a down book to move from #6 to #4. BEASLEY Active Rock WRIF dipped to #5 despite a solid share increase. iHEARTMEDIA Urban Contemporary WJLB fell from #5 to #9 as it surrendered most of last survey’s share gain. The market’s 25-54 PUMM improved by 16.8%.

When Santa started his antics in the NOVEMBER, that ended a long string of double-digit 18-34 books for WKQI. The station fell just short of double figures this month as it moved from #3 to #1. WNIC dipped to #2 as it gave up close to two-thirds of its previous share. WXYT stepped down to #3 with a small increase, while WRIF moved up to #4 as it regained about half of last survey’s massive share loss. WOMC slipped to #5 with a small increase. The market’s 18-34 PUMM grew by 12.3%.

WNIC shed a good portion of its HOLIDAY weight gain but was still #1 18-49 for the fourth book in a row. However, it was forced to share the spotlight with WKQI, which moved up from #2 as it bounced back from a down book. WXYT repeated at #3 with a slight decrease. WYCD had its best outing since SEPTEMBER as it jumped from #9 to #4. iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WMXD (MIX 92.3) landed its largest share in over a year as it rose from #8 to #5. WRIF rebounded from a down book but still slipped to #6. It was paired with CUMULUS Hot AC WDVD, which had its best book in over a year. WJLB fell from #4 to #10. The market’s 18-49 PUMM increased 14.5%.

MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL: A Good Sport

Despite the end-of-the-season flameout by the VIKINGS, iHEARTMEDIA Sports KFXN (K-FAN FM 100.3) was in double figures 6+ for the sixth straight survey (11.9-11.1). This time it moved back up to #1. MRP N/T KNOW stepped up to #2 (7.0-7.3). It also gained a 1.4 share from the headphone adjustment. iHEARTMEDIA Classic Hits KQQL (KOOL 108) went from first to third (14.6-7.2). It was also #3 last year with a 6.7 share. HUBBARD Hot AC KSTP (KS95) was up to #4, which was where it was before BURL IVES showed up (6.0-7.0). MPR AAA KCMP (THE CURRENT) inched up to #5 (5.5-5.4). It was paired with iHEARTMEDIA Pop CHR KDWB, which rose from #7 with its best book since SEPTEMBER (4.4-5.4). UNIVERSITY OF NORTHWESTERN-ST. PAUL Contemporary Christian KTIS fell three places to #7 with its smallest share in over a year (6.1-5.0). KQQL still had the most listeners (976,500-754,200) – a 22.8% drop. The market was up 2.3%. The market’s 6+ PUMM increased by 16.9%.

As with the previous demo, KFXN was in double digits 25-54 for the sixth straight survey and, since Santa has left the building, the station moved back up to #1. KSTP had its highest score since AUGUST as it moved from #4 to #2. It was about three shares off the lead. KCMP repeated at #3 with a small increase, while KDWB stepped up to #4 with a strong share gain. KQQL slid from #1 to #5. The market’s 25-54 PUMM was up 14.3%.

KQQL was both in double figures and #1 18-34 for the third book in a row. KFXN remained at #2 with a small increase, while three stations were a few shares behind at #3. KCMP held steady with its highest mark in over a year, while KTIS stepped up from #4 with its best showing since OCTOBER. KDWB advanced from #7 as it ended a steep two-book slide. CUMULUS Active Rock KXXR (93X) was up slightly as it slipped from #4 to #7. The market’s 18-34 PUMM rose by 6.0%.

Another demo and another six-book double-digit streak for KFXN. The station also moved back up to #1 18-49. KSTP narrowly missed double figures as it advanced to #2. KQQL dropped from #1 to #3, while KCMP dipped to #4 with a slight decrease. Also coming in at #4 was KDWB, which moved up from #6 with its highest share since SEPTEMBER. KTIS fell from #5 to #9. The market’s 18-49 PUMM increased 17.9%.

Are we having fun yet? More numbers are on the way from TAMPA, DENVER, SAN DIEGO, NASSAU-SUFFOLK and CHARLOTTE.

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-Steve Allan, Programming Research Consultant

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About Research Director, Inc.: Research Director, Inc. is based in Annapolis, Maryland. 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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