Ratings Slide Doesn’t Faze Confident KRTH

Even in an Arbitron ratings period when summer doldrums set in, when nothing that much seemed to be happening, there was still some movement worth noting in the figures that came out a few days ago.

Once an almost automatic shoo-in on the parade of top 10 stations in the Los Angeles-Orange County market, rock oldies station KRTH-FM (101.1) has been experiencing a steady decline over the past two years. In the most recent ratings survey, covering July 1 to Sept. 22, it registered a 2.6% audience share and finished 13th among listeners 12 and older, down from a 3.4% share and a seventh-place tie a year earlier.

Just two summers ago, KRTH had a substantial 4% share and was tied for fifth place. Although the 4% represents the high point over the past five years, the station regularly drew in the high 3s.

But don’t count KRTH out.

“We’re making some adjustments,” offers Pat Duffy, KRTH’s vice president and general manager.

Sounding rather sanguine about the situation, Duffy insists he is not surprised by the drop, and says that once listeners recognize that KRTH is not just playing ‘50s and ‘60s music anymore, the station should move back up. He cites such recent ‘70s additions to the playlist as “If You Leave Me Now” by Chicago; “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” by Creedence Clearwater Revival; Elton John’s “Your Song,” Carole King’s “It’s Too Late” and Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain.”

Duffy says there’s no need to change on-air personnel. “KRTH is a music-based radio station, so it’s just a matter of getting the mix correct, and it will grow back from there.”

Oldies stations in general are caught in a bind of balancing their older-skewing demographics with the younger preferences of most advertisers. “If the [preferred] advertising demographic was 35 to 64 [instead of] 25 to 54, the way it is now, you wouldn’t have to make an adjustment,” he says, “because it would just roll out with the baby boomers. And people who are listening to ‘70s music are the younger baby boomers.

“So we’re moving a little younger. Adult contemporary [music] stations don’t play ‘70s. They’re moving into the ‘90s, so it’s a giant field of music open to us.”

At the same time, Duffy points to other stations in the fragmented Southland market that have cut into KRTH’s oldies territory over the past year, particularly KCMG-FM (100.3), known as Mega 100, and, to a lesser extent, KACE-FM (103.9).

He draws hope, however, from KCMG’s drop in the summer ratings--to a 2.4% share from 3.2% a year earlier--and KACE’s anticipated change to a Spanish-language station. On Monday, Cox Radio announced that it had agreed to sell KACE and KRTO-FM (98.3), KACE’s simulcast outlet in West Covina, to Dallas-based Hispanic Broadcasting Inc.

Sibling News Rivalry: And then there was the movement of the market’s two all-news stations.

At a glance, it would seem that KNX-AM (1070) benefited at the expense of rival KFWB-AM (980). Last spring, they were separated by only one-tenth of a point, with KNX ahead at 2%. This summer, however, KNX was tied for 15th place with a 2.4% audience share, while KFWB dropped to 1.7% and 23rd place.

But George Nicholaw, KNX’s vice president and general manager, suggests that the imprecision of Arbitron’s survey is to blame. Last winter, he notes, KNX had a 2.5% share, then the 2% in the spring and now a 2.4%. “Gee, did we lose 25% [of our audience] in 90 days?” he asks. “I don’t think so.”

Could KFWB’s softer, lighter approach with occasional anchor chit-chat have accrued to KNX’s benefit? Nicholaw declined to comment. So did another news radio source, explaining, “That’s an area where it’s very uncomfortable. We have sort of been given the edict not to critique each other.”

Both stations are owned by CBS.

KFWB Program Director Dave Cooke has touted his station’s “more human, more personable” approach to the news, which he says is “a warmer, friendlier sound.” But any repartee among anchors is “minimal. Less than one-half of 1%” of the overall content is so-called light, he says. So “it doesn’t have any significance” on the ratings, Cooke argues.

“Sometimes you get good [Arbitron ratings] books, sometimes bad books,” he adds lightly. “It’s one of those Arbitron mysteries.”

Top 10 Host Parade: Who were the market’s most listened-to personalities this summer?

Morning host Renan Almendarez Coello on top-ranked Spanish-language station KSCA-FM (101.9) was No. 1: His 5-11 a.m. weekday show drew an average of 212,700 listeners per quarter hour.

In second place was Rush Limbaugh on talk station KFI-AM (640), heard 9 a.m.-noon, averaging 133,400 listeners, followed by KFI’s Laura Schlessinger, noon-3 p.m., with 121,000 listeners.

Rounding out the top 10 were Pepe Barreto of KLVE-FM (107.5), 116,100 listeners; Rick Dees of KIIS-FM (102.7), 100,100; Howard Stern of KLSX-FM (97.1), 91,500; Kevin and Bean of KROQ-FM (106.7), 76,900; Bill Handel of KFI, 71,000; Mark and Brian of KLOS-FM (95.5), 68,400; and the morning show on KKBT-FM (92.3), with 65,100--a program that changed hands during the three-month ratings survey, with John London & the House Party supplanted by Ed Lover and Dr. Dre. London and his crew moved to KCMG.

More Top Tens: These were the top 10 stations in the morning drive period (weekdays 6-10 a.m.), considered radio’s prime time: KSCA, averaging 229,100 listeners per quarter hour; KLVE, 129,900; KLSX, 108,700; KIIS, 100,100; KFI, 95,900, KROQ, 89,200; KNX, 79,400; KPWR-FM (105.9), 73,800; KKBT, 70,800; KLOS, 68,400.

The top 10 stations in afternoon drive (weekdays 3-7 p.m.): KLVE, 104,100; KIIS, 100,200; KPWR, 85,300; KROQ, 78,900; KKBT, 76,100; KBUE-FM (105.5), 67,500; KSCA, 67,200; KTWV-FM (94.7), 65,900; KYSR-FM (98.7), 61,400; KOST-FM (103.5), 59,200.

The top 10 stations among listeners ages 25 to 54: KSCA, 70,300; KLVE, 69,100; KTWV, 39,900; KIIS, 35,500; KCBS-FM (93.1), 35,000; KOST, 34,300; KROQ and KBUE, 33,100; KLAX-FM (97.9), 32,600; KYSR, 32,200.