WHY JARL MOHN IS SMILING TODAY • FEEDBACK ON NIELSEN’S CONTINUOUS DIARY MEASUREMENTS

Jarl Mohn

More than a few eyebrows were raised when          NPR CEO told us in an interview last March [link]:

“My personal belief is that there is no reason at all why every news-oriented NPR member station can’t be the number one news/talk station in every rated market in the country. This is our goal.”

As the data rolls in for Nielsen Audio’s Spring 2019 Diary markets, it appears NPR member stations are moving closer to Mohn’s goal.

Nielsen has released ratings for about half of the mid and small size markets that use Diary methodology. As of today’s count, there are 15 markets where the local NPR News station is the top radio news source.

The chart on the right tells the story. The red type indicates stations we have added to the list today. 

These stations now have larger average-quarter-hour share percentages (AQH) than News and Talk stations owned by the nation’s leading commercial operators.

It turns out this only the tip of the iceberg. 

We received an email from Mohn with additional details. He told us:

“One thing (an important one) that we’ve noticed is when we focus the demos to the one that is meaningful to us, 25-54 and look at morning and afternoon drive, NPR stations do even better.” 

This is important news because reaching people in the 25-54 demographic is vital for commercial broadcasters. 

The growth of NPR News stations, and the declines in listening to big commercial stations, is a national trend and we are proud to be telling the story.

THE TRUTH ABOUT NIELSEN’S CONTINUING DIARY MEASUREMENT

The Spring 2019 Diary market ratings are the first step of Nielsen’s new Continuing Diary Measurement (CDM) system.

CDM is Nielsen's response to complaints by ad agencies that Nielsen's quarterly reports are "stale."

Nielsen is making this change as cheaply as possible. Nielsen is now releasing 12 monthly reports instead of the current four. Nielsen is not increasing the sample size. Many stations are being charging more money for "reheated" information.

Truthfully, there are no new advantages for public radio stations with Nielsen's CDM changes. The public radio system commits substantial money to Nielsen (via RRC).  Are we seeing enhanced value of Nielsen's product?

We don't think so.

We will continue to publish Nielsen Diary and PPM data because it is the "common currency" of our industry.  We urge Nielsen to make their reports more useful and believable.