KPWR Powers Its Way to No. 1 in Ratings Again

A dance music format that appeared to be a throwback to the disco era of the late ‘70s when it first rocked onto the airwaves two years ago as “Power 106” has emerged as the undisputed champion of Los Angeles radio in the most recent Arbitron listener survey.

The ratings released Tuesday, which measured Los Angeles listening habits last fall, indicated that KPWR-FM (105.9), with its mix of traditional Top 40 and urban/contemporary music, remains the most listened-to station in Los Angeles for the third straight quarter.

“It’s extraordinary what the audience does for you when you work with only them in mind, and it’s a credit to our entire staff that they have come this far this fast,” said Jeff Wyatt, KPWR program director as well as the regular 9-to-11 a.m. deejay.

Rankings among stations basically remained the same among the Top 10, except for all-news KFWB-AM (980), which climbed into sixth place after falling out of the Top 10 in last summer’s Arbitron ratings. Audience levels for KROQ-FM (106.7) and KBIG-FM (104.3) dropped, but neither station fell out of the top 10.

KTWV-FM (94.7), known as “The Wave,” the much-publicized New Music station that replaced album-oriented rocker KMET one year ago, also slid in the ratings.

Here are the most popular Los Angeles stations, followed by their audience share as measured by Arbitron Ratings Service for the summer and fall quarters of 1987:

1. KPWR-FM (105.9) . . . 6.6 7.5

2. KIIS-FM (102.7) . . . 6.3 6.9

3. KABC-AM (790) . . . 5.8 5.5

4. KOST-FM (103.5) . . . 4.9 4.5

5. KJOI-FM (99.9) . . . 4.5 4.3

6. KFWB-AM (980) . . . 2.6 4.2

7. KBIG-FM (104.3) . . . 4.3 4.0

8. KLOS-FM (95.5) . . . 3.0 3.8

9. KROQ-FM (106.7) . . . 4.3 3.7

KRTH-FM (101.1) . . . 3.3 3.7

11. KLSX-FM (97.1) . . . 3.0 3.6

12. KNX-AM (1070) . . . 2.8 3.2

13. KTNQ-AM (1020) . . . 2.3 3.0

14. KIQQ-FM (100.3) . . . 2.7 2.8

15. KMPC-AM (710) . . . 2.8 2.5

KLVE-FM (107.5) 2.8 2.5