September ratings (Aug 14-Sep 10)

[CAwasinNJ]

So this entire ratings period too place after the switch of Rock from 106.5 to 106.7 and......





wait for it.....





The ratings actually went up! Who knows why. Maybe all the promotion, maybe the contest, maybe they would have anyway. Doesn't matter. Point is the frequency change didn't hurt them, which is good for iHeart. In fact, the 6+ numbers are the highest they've been all year. That's also good news for KNRS-FM, which is next at bat for a move in a week.


Speaking of moves, the 3rd go-round of AAA on 101.9 started right when this rating period ended so we have no data yet for the new Alt 101.9 or Vibe. For those who keep score of such things at home you'll want to note that the KHTB callsign moved to 101.9 along with Alt and the KENZ calls long associated with Alternative at 101.9 (and before that 107.5) are now on 94.9 The Vibe. This makes about as much sense as anything else coming out of Cumulus these days.


KLO is continuing to sink slowly to the point of not even being reported anymore, though now that summer is over the news/talk format in general might get a bit of a boost. Plus KLO has Weber State sports so that might help. They really need it.


Both KSOP's continue to do well, especially the AM for a music station. Nice to see a locally owned station continuing to do well.


Speaking of country, K-Bull is still the only bright spot on Cumulus' roster right now. With the shake up at the top this week I wonder how much longer their stations can continue mostly in the sub 2 shares. From the reports I've read about the new CEO my impression is that there isn't going to be a major sea change but I really don't know.


And that's what I got.

[Timmy]

Alpha should come and buy Cumulus' SLC cluster. That'd be some fun radio!

[CAwasinNJ]

Somehow I doubt that's going to happen, but I agree that it would be interesting. If I were Alpha (or anyone else looking to buy here) I'd definitely be looking at the divestiture stations that have been up for sale for a long time now.

[David]

"KLO is continuing to sink slowly to the point of not even being reported anymore, though now that summer is over the news/talk format in general might get a bit of a boost. Plus KLO has Weber State sports so that might help. They really need it."

So is it safe to say that adding Mills Crenshaw for afternoon drive hasn't done much to boost KLO's ratings presence, or do we need to wait for the next ratings period to make that statement?

I really think KLO needs to dump their talk format in favor of a lite A/C format like Dial Global's America's Best Music or some type of adult standards/oldies format. The last time I can remember KLO showing above .3 in the ratings is when the station still had a lite A/C format. The "second-class" talk format is already covered pretty well by KNRS and KTKK, and an adult standards/oldies format certainly couldn't sink KLO's ratings much lower. Moreover, it would fill a void on AM left vacant by KDYL dumping their Real Oldies format. The ratings for KSOP-AM are proof that there's still a market for AM music stations in this area.

OK, I'll get off my soapbox now.

[CAwasinNJ]

I wonder how many people even know he's there. Other than in the trade papers and here I don't think I've seen any reference to the show. That's not going to fly with a talk show. Maybe KLO is just waiting for the fall to start getting the word out, I don't know.

But that brings me to your second point. If I were KLO I wouldn't be flipping the format now. As I mentioned, the talk format ratings do go down over the summer. Between vacations and wanting to take it easy I think that takes a toll. I expect the ratings to rebound at least a bit just from that.

I also mentioned Weber State sports. They should take advantage of the young demos that listen to Weber sports that don't listen any other time. College age kids are somewhat notorious for being more fervent in their politics than older people. Use that to your advantage. Take some of that advertising inventory and run spots aimed at the kids who want to change the world and invite them to participate in the talk programming. The talk is generally aimed at older demos, but you might pick up a few listeners.

And that brings me to a longer term outlook. The 2016 Presidential campaign is right around the corner, and with it will come a big increase in interest in national politics. That should help all talk stations.

By the way, KLO was above a .3 when they were still simulcasting on 103.1 in the first half of last year. They've hit .3 exactly on several occasions since the split.

Having said all that, I think your idea has merit. If I were KLO's owner and was looking at liteAC or standards or something like that I'd be looking at co-owned Sunny 103. Remember that Sunny did pretty well with a Christmas format last holiday season, so try to repeat that this season and use some of that advertising time to encourage people to stay tuned after the Christmas music ends. They didn't stay last year, but maybe with the right campaign they might, especially if the type of music is similar. Even without Sunny, there's still hope. There are a bunch of new stations that will be needing a format.

[David]

CA, I think that KWCR 88.1 FM still broadcasts the Wildcats football and basketball games, or at least the home games. But since KWCR's signal is fairly low power and somewhat directional, I'm sure that KLO can use the reach of AM radio to their advantage for Weber State sports. Then again, maybe not. Since AM radio's demo is highly skewed towards older listeners, there's a whole generation of listeners who won't even consider listening to AM, if they even know it exists. That might give KWCR a small advantage over KLO for WSU sports.

[CAwasinNJ]

KWCR is in a weird limbo. The building they had their antenna on was demolished and they've been trying to get relicensed for a few years now. They've been running under Special Temporary Authority from the Riverdale tower for the past several years. The signal (and their originally licensed signal) are both non-directional however.

I don't know if KWCR broadcasts any Wildcat games, but KLO does make a big deal out of it. I would think there would be more money in it for the school to be on a commercial outlet but who knows.

[CAwasinNJ]

Nielsen got confused by the 94.9 & 101.9 switches so there will be a revised report coming out Monday the 12th.