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May Ratings

I think that's reasonable, although now The End is making a bit of a comeback, up a half point (2.2 to 2.7) in the last few months, and that hasn't hurt KEXP, which is up a point or more during the same time.
Life is beginning to transition (somewhat) back to what it looked like before the pandemic. I would agree that radio usage is probably up slightly on average. The End does have a fairly popular morning host, and that probably gives them decent a boost for their morning drive. Whether or not that boost effectively carries over to these 6+ ratings I cannot say. Either way, I'd probably be happy with how things are going if I were in charge of 107.7. KEXP is stronger, but they are non-commercial and really aren't direct competition. Additionally, iHeart probably wouldn't bother putting their "Alt" brand back in Seattle knowing that the alt market is covered.
 
I'd watch what this summer brings. Jay Inslee's COVID restrictions end on June 30th or when 70% of the state has at least one vaccination. The Ellensburg Rodeo is a go, fairs are a go, higher capacity at Mariners games...and where the families and couples go, the radio goes with them. As offices start to reopen to normal capacity, will 94.1 get a boost? Or 106.9?
 
Life is beginning to transition (somewhat) back to what it looked like before the pandemic. I would agree that radio usage is probably up slightly on average.
There have been reports in the trades about the last two monthlies in the PPM markets showing radio listening back to near the pre-pandemic levels. The growth is bit by bit, but seen across markets.

Of course, the published "ratings" are actually shares. So we don't see this trend in the public data, but those with access to full reports do see it.
 
Indie rock is very popular with younger people in the Pacific Northwest. KEXP does a great job with breaking new music, and being a hyperlocal source for entertainment. While the KEXP presentation may not be for everyone, it is fulfilling one very important purpose: it is giving younger listeners (who might otherwise stick to streaming apps) a reason to have the radio on.

As I see it, KEXP's surgence in ratings popularity was in many ways, a lucky long-hauler symptom of COVID-19. Like KING-FM, they started climbing up last year as many people were working from home (where music selection was finally worker-choice.) KING-FM is down, but Classical is mostly an indoors music. I think KEXP has the one-up of being anything at any given time for anywhere.

But regardless of what the ratings before 2020 may have indicated, KEXP has always been incredibly popular in the Seattle area. It's just that those with PPMs are finally discovering it for themselves now without the peer pressure, office/workplace music policies/selections and the default familiarity of everything else they heard. Or were expected to hear. (We all changed in some way last year.) They had all the free time to listen. And apparently, they like it.
 
Only if they have a death wish. That format is quite narrow in Seattle.
Yep. Seattle's MSA is only 6.5% Black and 10% Hispanic while NYC is 45% Black and Hispanic.
 
Yep. Seattle's MSA is only 6.5% Black and 10% Hispanic while NYC is 45% Black and Hispanic.
We're also more integrated here, at least the south county which has probably half the population of the metro. Blacks and Hispanics here generally aren't in enclaves. One would think the media usage would reflect that on some level.
 
We're also more integrated here, at least the south county which has probably half the population of the metro. Blacks and Hispanics here generally aren't in enclaves. One would think the media usage would reflect that on some level.
Nonetheless, much / most of the Black and Hispanic measurement takes place in HDBA and HDHA areas within the counties and the total markets.

A bit oversimplified: Nielsen needs to get a representative sample of ethnic groups, so to make sure they do they define the areas where Blacks and/or Hispanics are most concentrated. They try to get a high percentage of the total market ethnic samples in those zones (which are defined by ZIP Codes, not full counties or cities).

So the sample of those ethnic groups is generally concentrated in those zones. Seattle has both Black and Hispanic HDHA zones and they are defined in the market report that subscribers get.

Seattle MSA is made of Island,, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston counties.
 
Maybe KUBE should go full on Hip Hop & R&B like Power 105.1 in NYC.
That’s not happening. You want hip hop/R&B to succeed on a full power signal in the Northwest and the Northern US? (Not talking translators and instances like Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee and Rochester.) Have to be rhythmic and appeal to Caucasians primarily.
 
That’s not happening. You want hip hop/R&B to succeed on a full power signal in the Northwest and the Northern US? (Not talking translators and instances like Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee and Rochester.) Have to be rhythmic and appeal to Caucasians primarily.
I'm not even sure that success is the operative word for KUBE or KHTP. We know that the 6+ numbers don't tell the full story, and I sincerely hope that there is more to the story than what we see.
 
Only if they have a death wish. That format is quite narrow in Seattle.
Considering there are something like 65+ radio signals in the market, if I could lock-in 6.5% of the total market audience 18+MW? I'd take that risk all day long. That said; modern white suburban youth and Millennial's like hip hop too. Not just Black and Latino's.
 
The last sentence here can be attributed to David, not me.
Nice disclaimer. But you're right, was rolling both comments into one reply.
Can't think of a station that wouldn't absolutely LOVE to own roughly 7% of the 3,979,845 population count in the Seattle/Tacoma media market.
 
I just want to say it's great to see KISW in first place in the beauty pageant numbers. (I realize, of course, that first place finishes in key demos are not at all uncommon for this legendary station.)
 
Even in heavily black markets hip hop ratings are the lowest I have ever seen. Urban AC dominates over Hip Hop.
 
Even in heavily black markets hip hop ratings are the lowest I have ever seen. Urban AC dominates over Hip Hop.
Yet the one Urban AC we have here is on an X-Band AM that never even charts a 0.1 in the PPM. Things might be different if they had an FM translator, on the other hand. Who wants to listen to Jazmine Sullivan and Robin Thicke in noisy MONO on AM? While I'm sure KGNW had a purpose of putting that translator on at 104.1, the Z-Twins should have gotten it instead...but dream on...
 
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