The holiday ratings period – representing roughly the last four weeks of the year – were kind once again to KOST (103.5 FM), which dominated the local ratings by playing holiday music. Earning a 13.1 share of the audience, KOST earned almost three times the rating (2.79 times actually, rounded off) held by second-place KRTH’s (101.1 FM) 4.7 share.
Interestingly, though, the rating was a little lower than last year at the same time, when KOST earned a 13.4 share, and down even more from 2020’s 13.9. I wouldn’t read anything into that … many things are at work, not the least of which is the fact that people were allowed to leave their homes more freely, unlike the past two years. Still, it’s interesting.
Also interesting: Go Country’s switch to holiday music didn’t seem to make a dent one way or another with the station earning a 2.5 … about what it earns normally. KFI (640 AM) was 3rd with a 4.4, followed by KLVE (107.5 FM) at 4.2 and My FM KBIG (104.3) at 3.9.
Moving down the list a bit, the competition of Alt 98.7 and KROQ (106.7 FM) found the stations closer together than they have been in a while, which Alt earning a 15th place 2.3 share and KROQ tied with KPCC (89.3 FM) for 19th at 2.0KLOS (95.5 FM) fell a little, to 2.5 from December’s 2.9 and the 3.0 share it held in September, October and November. This gave Jack-FM KCBS (93.1) a chance to take back the classic rock lead even though it was flat from December’s 2.8. The problem for Jack is that back in August, it had a 3.9 share, and other than in November, the trend has been down. It should be interesting to see what happens the first half of this year.
KLOS sister station Power 106 (KPWR, 105.9 FM) is still struggling. In spite of an excellent signal, it continues to languish far below its closest competitor KIIS-FM (102.7), with a 23rd place, 1.6 share against KIIS’s 7th place 3.0. There was a time when Power beat KIIS, and it wasn’t that long after KIIS set records for FM ratings – as high as 10.0 – in the mid-1980s. Kind of makes you wonder.
And from the files of “I Told You So,” KNX (1070 AM, 97.1 FM) earned a 2.5 share of the ratings, tying KLOS and Go Country at 11th place. For historical comparison, KNX earned a combined AM-FM 2.8 share in Holiday 2021 and an AM-only 3.2 share in Holiday 2020. Clearly, the simulcast on FM has not helped, and owner Audacy lost the approximately 1.5 share it had with the old KNOU format it ran on 97.1 before the simulcast, even as bad as that format was. In the meantime, KFI has increased its ratings over the same period. Weird.
Honestly, Audacy should drop the simulcast, move the call letters back to 93.1 FM and play mellow rock on the FM. But they won’t.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the Holiday ratings? KRTH’s online stream earned a 0.7 share … higher than 15 rated stations on the list and just below KABC’s (790 AM) 0.8 share of the audience.
Each rating is an estimate of the percentage of listeners, age 6 and over, tuned to a station between the hours of 6 a.m. and 12 midnight, as determined by Nielsen.
1. KOST (13.1) 2. KRTH (4.7) 3. KFI (4.4) 4. KLVE (4.2) 5. KBIG (3.9) 6. KTWV The Wave (3.4) 7. KIIS-FM (3.0) 8. KCBS-FM (2.8) 9. KRRL (2.7) 10. KLAX, KXOL (2.6) 12. KKGO, KLOS, KNX (2.5) 15. KYSR Alt (2.3) 16. KBUE, KLYY, KRCD (2.1) 19. KPCC, KROQ (2.0) 21. KUSC (1.9) 22. KSCA (1.7) 23. KPWR (1.6) 24. KLLI (1.5) 25. KJLH (1.4) 26. KKJZ (1.3) 27. KDAY, KFWB (1.2) 29. KCRW, KLAC (0.9) 31. KABC (0.8) 32. KDLD, KRTH Stream (0.7) 34. KCSN, KEIB, KRLA (0.5) 37. KFSH, KWIZ (0.4) 39. KKLA, KPFK (0.2) 40. KCBS-FM Stream, KHJ, KIRN, KNX-FM Stream, KROQ Stream, KTNQ, KTWV Stream, KWKW (0.1)
Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist. Email rwagoner@socalradiowaves.com
