Mexican Music Station Leaps to Third in Ratings

Spanish-language adult contemporary music station KLVE-FM (107.5) continued its reign in the local radio market for the seventh quarter in a row, Arbitron reported Thursday, but another Spanish-language station is coming on strong.

KSCA-FM (101.9), which became a Mexican regional music station in February--to the dismay of its longtime English-language adult album alternative fans--zoomed to third place from its impressive sixth-place opening last quarter, gaining nearly a full point in audience share, from 3.5% to 4.4%.

Staying in second place among all listeners 12 and older for the spring quarter, which covers the period from March 27 to June 18, was urban station KKBT-FM (92.3), though its audience share dropped a point to 4.5%.

Among talk-radio outlets, KFI-AM (640) fell from a 4.3% share to 3.7%, its lowest level in more than a year. Its overall ranking also dropped, from fourth place to eighth in the market, which covers Los Angeles and Orange counties. Rival KABC-AM (790) dropped too, from a 3% share to 2.8%.

While hip-hop station KPWR-FM (105.9) took fourth place with a 4.3% share, the biggest gains were registered by oldies station KRTH-FM (101.1), going from 3.3% and eighth place to 3.9% and fifth place; and KIIS-FM (102.7), a Top 40 station that went from a ninth place tie at 3.2% last quarter to 3.8% and a sixth-place tie this time.

Station rankings were somewhat different among listeners ages 25-54, the demographic most prized by advertisers. KLVE was still on top, but KSCA was second, followed by a block of music stations: KRTH, KTWV-FM (94.7), KCBS-FM (93.1) and KOST-FM (103.5).

In morning drive competition, KLVE’s popular Pepe Barreto maintained his No. 1 standing and moved up a bit to a 7.4% share. In second place was KSCA host Renan Almendarez Cuello, who uses a lot of humor in presenting his music. In the previous ratings period, which included part of the time KSCA still had an English-language format, the station had a 3% share and was in 14th place. Today Cuello has a hefty 5.8% audience share.

Howard Stern on KLSX-FM (97.1) was the top English-language morning host. His numbers stayed exactly the same as the previous quarter: a 4.8% share and third place overall.

KKBT’s “House Party” plummeted from a 5.9% share to 4.5% and dropped back from second to fourth place in the morning.

Apparently taking a substantial licking as well in the spring ratings was KABC’s morning team of Ken Minyard and Peter Tilden. A ratings breakout for their 5-9 a.m. slot was not immediately available Thursday, but in the 6-10 a.m. block, KABC dropped from a 3.7% share and fifth place to 2.8% and a 12th-place tie. The last hour of Arbitron’s morning-drive section takes in the first hour of KABC’s Michael Jackson, who last week lost his longtime midmorning slot and is being moved to weekends. The station cited his ratings as reason for the change.

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Radio Ratings

The area’s Top 25 stations and their Arbitron ratings for the spring months compared with the first quarter of the year:

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CURRENT LAST QUARTER 1. KLVE-FM 6.6 6.0 2. KKBT-FM 4.5 5.5 3. KSCA-FM 4.4 3.5 4. KPWR-FM 4.3 4.6 5. KRTH-FM 3.9 3.3 6. KIIS-FM 3.8 3.2 KROQ-FM 3.8 3.4 8. KFI-AM 3.7 4.3 9. KOST-FM 3.6 3.2 10. KTWV-FM 3.4 3.8 11. KABC-AM 2.8 3.0 KYSR-FM 2.8 2.1 13. KCBS-FM 2.6 2.8 KLAX-FM 2.6 3.2 15. KTNQ-AM 2.5 2.1 KZLA-FM 2.5 2.1 17. KBIG-FM 2.4 2.7 18. KLAC-AM 2.2 2.4 KLOS-FM 2.2 2.3 20. KLSX-FM 2.0 1.9 KNX-AM 2.0 2.4 KFWB-AM 2.0 2.1 23. KBUE-FM 1.7 2.0 24. KIBB-FM 1.6 1.8 25. KKGO-FM 1.5 1.6

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The ratings survey covers people 12 and older listening between 6 a.m. and midnight, from March 27 through June 18.