WLW, WCKY show growth in summer radio ratings

By Jarrett Hicks, Rob Riggsbee

The results of the latest Cincinnati Arbitron radio ratings survey can be summed up in a single three-letter word: WLW.

The summer survey for the Cincinnati market was released Friday and covers the July through September listening period. The numbers show that the upcoming mid-term elections and the Reds’ strong on-field performance had a definite impact on the listenership of news talk station WLW-AM 700 and sports talker WCKY-AM 1530.

WLW was No. 1 in overall (12+) listener share, as well as share of adults 25-54, the key radio advertiser demographic. In addition to its top-ranked summer performance from 7 p.m. to midnight, when the Reds played most of their games, its share of listeners grew 18 percent from the spring and 31 percent from last summer.

WLW’s talk lineup had the No. 1 share of adults 25-54 in all three weekday dayparts, a reflection of the market’s interest in the upcoming political elections as well as the Reds. Longtime WLW morning drive host Jim Scott regained the top adult 25-54 share from spring leader “Bob and Tom” on WOFX 92.5. Scott registered an 8.2 average quarter hour share, ahead of WUBE-FM 105.1 (7.1 share) and WOFX (6.9 share).

The Reds’ chase for the playoffs combined with excitement over the upcoming Bengals season increased listenership on sports talk station WCKY-AM 1530 (“Homer”). At the beginning of the ratings period, Clear Channel radio switched the frequencies and call letters of “Homer” and Air America liberal talk, to allow “Homer” the benefit of a stronger signal. Air America is now at WSAI-AM 1360 and “Homer” is at WCKY-AM 1530.

With men 25-54, both stations saw double-digit and even triple-digit percentage increases from their spring 2006 and summer 2005 daypart shares. For instance, Lance McAlister’s sports talk mid-afternoon program on “Homer” nearly doubled from a 4.2 spring share (on “1360-Homer”) to a 7.7 summer share of men 25-54, on the new “1530-Homer” frequency.

In the “power demo” of adults 18-34, the top two stations switched positions from the spring. Rock station WEBN-FM 102.7 regained the top share of adults 18-34 from WKFS-FM 107.1 (“Kiss-107″). WEBN’s overall (Monday-Sunday) average quarter hour audience share grew to an 11.2 share, compared to Kiss-107’s 10.4 share.

WEBN saw substantial growth in the mid-day (10 a.m.-3 p.m.) and PM drive (3-7 p.m.), and is now No. 1 with adults 18-34 in those time periods. On the other hand, the “Dawn Patrol” morning show on WEBN fell to No. 2 with adults 18-34, behind Russ Parr on WIZF-FM 101.1 (“The Wiz”).

Rounding out the top five overall (Monday-Sunday) stations with adults 18-34 are WIZF-FM 101.1 (9.0 share), WKRQ-FM 101.9 (8.0 share) and WMOJ-FM 94.9 (5.7 share). The 8.0 overall share on WKRQ 101.9 marked its best results with adults 18-34 in over a year.

The strong performance of WMOJ-FM 94.9 with adults 18-34 was significant, but even more remarkable was its performance with women 25-54. “Mojo 94.9″ jumped into the top five ranking in the three main weekday time periods. “Mojo” also doubled its women 25-54 listenership from the spring to become the top-ranked morning drive program, with an 11.3 share.

At the very end of the summer rating period, WMOJ-FM 94.9 owner Cumulus Media announced that it would be selling the station’s intellectual property, including the call letters, to competitor Radio One. The new “Mojo” will now be heard on WMOJ-FM 100.3, while the 94.9 frequency is now simulcasting country music with sister station WYGY-FM 96.5. The effect of these changes will not be known until the fall Arbitron ratings period ends in December.

Soft-rock AC station WRRM-FM (“Warm 98″), which had an outstanding spring performance with women 25-54, saw double-digit share losses in the summer rating period. However, “Warm 98″ remains No. 1 with women 25-54 in the mid-day and PM drive time periods.

Classic hits station WGRR-FM 103.5 also saw a significant drop in its women 25-54 share. Compared to the spring rating period, where WGRR ranked fifth in all three weekday dayparts, the station saw double-digit female share losses. Of particular concern is the WGRR “Chris and Janeen” morning show, which dropped from fifth in the spring to 12th among women 25-54. The program also lost 50 percent of its audience share since the summer of 2005.

Summer 2006 average quarter hour share – Mon-Sun 6 a.m.-midnight (Source: Arbitron, Inc.) Adults 12+ (total listeners) Rank-Station-Share
1. WLW-AM 700: 11.2
2. WUBE-FM 105.1: 5.7
3. WRRM-FM 98.5: 5.6
4. WEBN-FM 102.7: 5.5
5. WMOJ-FM 94.9: 5.3

Adults 18-34 Rank-Station-Share
1. WEBN-FM 102.7: 11.2
2. WKFS-FM 107.1: 10.4
3. WIZF-FM 100.9: 9.7
4. WKRQ-FM 101.9: 8.0
5. WMOJ-FM 94.9: 5.7

Adults 25-54 Rank-Station-Share
1. WLW-AM 700: 9.4
2. WUBE-FM 105.1: 6.5
3. WMOJ-FM 94.9: 6.0
4. WEBN-FM 102.7: 5.9
5. WOFX-FM 92.5: 5.3