Posts in "Hot Topics"
October 17, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
We now have nine months of data on how Nielsen’s implementation of the three-minute qualifier has affected radio listening in the PPM markets. Results have varied by market, demo, and format. The top line number is – according to Nielsen – that listening is up by 17%.
While this does not appear to have had a dramatic impact on programming tactics, there are implications for the sales world. Wait, a programming guy is going to opine about sales? (I see collective eye rolls from all the sales professionals I worked with during my radio station career).
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October 10, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
Back from the shadows again The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with those masters of the dark NIELSEN arts from XTRENDS – bring you our final installment of the SEPTEMBER saga. This is a drama that writes itself (if only). It features the usual suspects, surprise encounters, and heartbreaking, if not tragic, defeats. It is the reality that shapes careers – which is probably the most frightening aspect of this story.
Come on this journey with us. One that began on AUGUST 21st and reached its final destination on SEPTEMBER 17th. There were school buses to catch, dorm rooms to decorate, a three-day weekend and, thankfully – lots and lots of football. Let us begin…
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October 9, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
What is it about SEPTEMBER that inspires so many songwriters? Does it have something to do with failed summer romances? Is it the crispness of the fall air? It can’t be the rhyming pattern because other months have three syllables. And we’re not talking one-offs here. There are some truly iconic SEPTEMBER songs. As a matter of fact, if I just type the line “Do you remember…” you automatically have that ear worm stuck in your head.
You’re welcome.
The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in close cooperation with the data diviners from XTRENDS – are not here to discuss cultural trends. Our job is to present the facts as we see them. The SEPTEMBER survey ran from AUGUST 21st through SEPTEMBER 17th. It features the back-to-school daze, football and a three-day holiday weekend. Here’s how it played out:
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October 8, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
SEPTEMBER. A time of renewal. When our lives return to the routine. When the air is crisp with the aromas of autumn. There’s apple cider, football, and way too much pumpkin spice. (True story: A local storage facility is advertising pumpkin spice storage units. This is getting out of hand, people.)
The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with algorithmic alchemists from XTRENDS – are back with another round of ratings hijinks. The SEPTEMBER book ran from AUGUST 21st through SEPTEMBER 17th. Along with the usual life stuff that listeners were dealing with, there was a three-day weekend wedged in there somewhere. Let’s proceed with the data dump…
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October 7, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
Though this series of roundups are focused on the NIELSEN version of SEPTEMBER, the reality is that this survey traversed two distinct worlds. It ran from AUGUST 21st through SEPTEMBER 17th. As such the first half of the book was all about last minute vacations and the beginning of the school year. Then came a three-day federally mandated weekend. This was followed by a return to whatever normal schedules are and, of course, football.
The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with our running mates from XTRENDS – are here for all of it. Settle in as we regale you with stories of ratings and rankings. We do this because of our love of the game…
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October 6, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
It seems every week there is an article in the trades about the power of AM/FM radio vs. the online listening environment. Our percentages are great. People spend more time with radio than any ad supported digital platform.
Yay for us.
There is one small problem here. Buried in Edison’s Q2 2025 Share of Ear report was this nugget.
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September 25, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
As The Ratings Experts, we see a lot of ratings data from multiple markets. Over time we have noticed that in PPM markets, Average Weekly Time Exposed (AWTE) – or TSL – has been steadily eroding. Yes, the implementation of the three-minute qualifier has stemmed that ebbing tide, but every radio station in a market is fighting for a slice of a smaller pie. As with candy bars, we are seeing TSL shrinkflation.
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September 22, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
While the industry focus on the three-minute reporting rule has drifted to the back burner, it is still worth looking at how the change affected listening levels. Once again, The Ratings Experts from Research Director, Inc. collaborated with the number’s crunchers from XTRENDS to compare Q2 of 2025 with Q2 of 2024. The data set features 48 of the 49 PPM markets.
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September 12, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
Ah, AUGUST—when the calendar pretends summer is endless, but reality disagrees. The only thing hotter than the asphalt is everyone’s impatience for vacation to end and spreadsheets to return. If the month had a motto, it’d probably be “Halfway between sunscreen and school supplies, with a dash of existential dread.”
The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in close cooperation with the data diviners from XTRENDS – are back for one last foray into the AUGUST book. This one ran from JULY 24TH through AUGUST 20TH. It was holiday free, but many were focused on back to school stuff. Heck, at least we had the excitement of NFL exhibition, er, pre-season football.
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September 11, 2025
Filed Under: Hot Topics
We’ve put the band back together for another round of ratings reveals. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – along with the usual suspects from XTRENDS – are here to regale you with facts, figures, and maybe some snide commentary. It depends on how the mood strikes us and how the numbers fall out. Will AUGUST be more of the same or will there be unexpected reveals hidden beneath the surface? That is up to you, the intrepid reader, to find out.
This book ran from JULY 24th through AUGUST 20th. There were no official holidays, but folks were hitting the road to enjoy that last gasp of summer. Let’s take a closer look…
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We now have nine months of data on how Nielsen’s implementation of the three-minute qualifier has affected radio listening in the PPM markets. Results have varied by market, demo, and format. The top line number is – according to Nielsen – that listening is up by 17%.
