ONE OF A KIND STATIONS YOU MIGHT NOT HAVE HEARD OF • LPFM STATIONS WITH RATINGS

One of the things we enjoy about the semi-annual Nielsen Audio ratings in Diary markets is the chance to learn about new or overlooked stations. There are some great shops out there beyond the “NPR orbit.”

In the chart on the left are nine stations that don’t fall into traditional categories. We have previously written about some of them including:

• KTSC, Pueblo [link] a Contemporary Hits station where the students learn in a professional environment;

• WGVU-AM, Grand Rapids [link], a station where you will hear Bobby Goldsboro singing Honey and Louie Louie by the Kingsmen is still in power-rotation;

• WPRR-AM, also in Grand Rapids [link], a/k/a Reality Radio, a community station with a definite point-of-view. WPRR makes no attempt to be “fair and balanced.” The station is operated by local union members;

 • KALA, Davenport, Iowa in the Quad Cities market [link], is a passion-project GM David Baker at St. Ambrose University. KALA successfully mixes Catholic ideology with Smooth Jazz, Gospel music and weekly programs from NPR, PRI, APM and PRX that are not heard elsewhere in the market;

• KPBZ, Spokane [link], the only station we are aware of in a rated market that airs PRX Rewind program service 24/7. Rewind is a good daypart choice but it isn’t working as a full-time format.

BEST STATION IN THE GROUP: WJAB, MONTGOMERY

If you want to see and hear the gutsiest station in Alabama, check out WJAB in Huntsville [link].  When you do, give thanks and praise for Hayward Handy, “the father of WJAB.”

Hayward Handy was the great nephew of the "Father of the Blues," W.C. Handy. When Hayward Handy died in September 2006, the 80-year-old gentleman was remembered for his love of music and radio. He won a two-decade struggle to put WJAB on the air in Huntsville and thousands of listeners thank him for his love and devotion everyday.

Hayward Handy taught science at Alabama A&M University in Huntsville. He founded A&M’s Telecommunications Center in 1991 and secured the FCC license for WJAB.

Joy Sidney

Today WJAB is a mix of professionals and students. Its powerful 100,000-watt signal carries a tasty blend of jazz and blues. 

The most popular show on WJAB is Coffee and Tea, hosted by Joy Sidney. Sidney shares the pulse of the community with tasty morning music weedays from 6am to 9am. People seem to agree because WJAB’s estimated weekly listeners grew by almost 50% between Fall 2016 and Fall 2017.

YES, LPFM STATIONS ARE RATED BY NIELSEN AUDIO & ARE FUNDED BY CPB

We recently saw on a LPFM bulletin board someone saying LPFM stations are eligible to measured by Nielsen and do not qualify for CPB funding. Both assertions are not true.

The chart of the left shows five LPFM stations that were listed in the Fall 2017 ratings. Nielsen Audio collects listening data for all broadcast stations – they just don’t release numbers for stations that don’t subscribe.

Not only does WGVV-LP – Groove 92.5 – have a growing number of weekly listeners, according to WGVV’s IRS 990 for FY 2015, CPB contributes roughly $115,000 per year, half of the station’s $230,000 annual revenue. In FY 2015, WGVV [link] also received $52,500 from members and $56,960 from underwriting.