last link on the left

The all-important "Fall 2008" book measured Edmonton radio audiences from September 1st to October 26th. The total measured audience was 1,763,200 – up 116,200 from summer's 1,647,000 ... indicating rampant rumours of radio's demise may be a little premature.

The Fall book is the Big Kahuna in radio circles as it determines a station's rate card – their prices charged to advertisers.

While the results of every ratings book are closely examined and explained away, the Fall book is the gold standard – the one that is agreed by all to be taken seriously.

That said, the words of short story author Saki will no doubt still be heard in some radio station hallways after the latest results: "A little inaccuracy sometimes saves tons of explanation."

But the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement will soon be rolling out Portable People Meters (PPMs) to determine station listenership. Edmonton is set to use the pager-sized devices in the fall of 2009.

Worn by those surveyed, PPMs pick up inaudible signatures encoded in broadcast signals and accurately record the station, time of day and duration of listen (although some might say duration of involuntary exposure, such as in a friend's car or while shopping for jeans at your local mall or drill bits at a nearby Home Depot).

The shift from the current manual diary-based survey system to the passive electronic form could greatly alter the traditional view of the listener landscape (as was found out in Montreal where the first PPM tests were piloted).

Which means Edmonton's Fall 2008 ratings survey may be one for the history books ... as the last widely "accepted" snapshot of the local radio scene using the diary method.

And PPMs may change how radio programs itself: with listenership determined electronically, on-air station I.D.s may not be heard so frequently (from personalities or during "splitters" between songs). PPMs may also measure podcasts and internet streaming, motivating stations to further embrace their internet presence (but whether the devices can eavesdrop on iPod ear buds remains to be seen ... or heard).

And PPMs may also change how management decides on radio careers: if PPM technology eventually allows individual stations to monitor themselves in real time, then this hour's boss jock may be the next hour's "Where he is now?" trivia question.

What is for certain is that PPMs will remove the generational/technological bias of the current diary format ... and the words of Saki may have to be re-written as: "An abundance of accuracy will require tons of explanation."

For your consideration, in order of ranking ... the Fall 2008 book:

CHED - 11.4 (9.7 Summer 2008, 11.7 Fall 2007)

The heart attack that was the Summer 2008 book quickly passed for the Corus folk as the broadcaster re-bounded from its worst showing in decades to back to the top of the heap.

"If it ain't broke" seems to be the modus operandi on Roper Road, and CHED commanded its usual 11+ share for the rate-setting fall book.

With both its rightsholder sports team broadcasts back on the air, the Mighty 630 held its own and put crown-challenger The Bear back in its place.

However, many inside the industry have wondered about CHED's seeming-forever dominance and look forward to the truths Portable People Meters may reveal. But for now, Rutherford and company can take their heads out from between their knees and place their feet back up on their desks.

In the morning show rankings, Gord Whitehead commands first place with a 14.4 share (up from 13.4 a year ago). In the 25-54 age demographic, males chose CHED second with a 12.3 share while women ranked it sixth with a 5.7.

CISN - 10.6 (9.3 Summer 2008, 8.2 Fall 2007)

The Corus good news spilled over onto sister-station CISN as well, restoring the station to its perennial spot in the top three while weathering the fickle nature of the country audience (the station has swung back from an eighth-place 5.6 showing as recently as the summer of 2007).

Steady as she goes, PD Chris Scheetz was likely heard to say now that the station has parked another winning book in the Corus back quarter.

Bruce Bowie's numbers earned him second spot in the mornings, up a full point from fall 2009 (10.6 from 9.6). Demographically, women 25-54 chose CISN first (15.2 share) while men the same age ranked it third (8.7).

CFBR - The Bear - 9.6 (11.6, 10.9)

Rounds bought by Paul Brown and company may not come so often at Hudson's on 104th Avenue with the sobering news of the latest book.

After toppling the CHED giant in the Summer 2008 book, egos at The Bear have likely returned to their normal upright positions with a top-three finish.

The challenge of new competing morning lineups seems to have had little effect on the rock station or its faithful audience. And under the faithful guidance of GM Marty Forbes, expect no sweeping changes.

The Paul Brown Show ranks third in the mornings with a 9.9 share, down from 12.0 at the same time last year. Predictably, The Bear wins top spot in the male 25-54 age bracket with a 22.5 share, with women the same age placing it seventh with a 5.8 share. For men 18-24, the station commanded a 31.5 share.

CHBN - The Bounce - 9.2 (8.1, 7.8)

Given that the Bounce's target demo is the least likely to labouriously record their listening habits in a paper diary – like, duh? – the fall book must be doubly pleasing: it's the station's best showing ever and it seems to have come at the cost of its nearest competitor: 102.9 Sonic FM.

Then again, some might argue that it's simply a case of an audience only knowing what it likes ... and for them The Bounce delivers.

The morning show of Pepper and Dylan rates fifth overall with a 9.8 share (8.0 last year). In the Bounce's target demo (18-24) women place it first with a 37.7 share, with men placing it second with a 20.5.

CFMG - EZ Rock - 7.8 (6.4, 9.2)

The addition to the morning show of Global Edmonton TV personality and former Magic 99 swingshifter Seanna Collins seems to have had a positive effect on the safe at work's placing compared to the summer book. The morning show rated sixth with a 6.9 share (however down from fall 2007's 7.9).

Program director Steve Moore left the station on a high note – he's now away from the station (and the business) and enjoyed hearing of the good news while on holiday in Hawaii.

Given the fragmented market that is Edmonton, and the challenge of Capital FM's also safe to work with sound, EZ Rock's fifth place showing remains one to be proud of. When it comes to radio, it's always safe to say "It figures ..."

Demographically, EZ Rock did best with women 25-54 (second place with a 9.7) while men the same age ranked it eight with a 4.9.

CBX - CBC Radio One - 7.1 (5.6, 5.1)

Previous prominent showings by the public broadcaster have always been poo-poohed by local media watchers: an anomaly some have stated, a disproportionate distribution of surveys others have suggested.

But it remains to be said there is an audience for thoughtful news and talk radio ... and when that audience tires of what is offered by commercial outlets, the CBC offers a welcome refuge.

Either that or fans of former rock jock Mark Scholz have been filling their diaries out like crazy hoping to land the funnyman a permanent spot as guest host for either one of Radio One's drive slots.

CBC's 7.1 share is their best showing since the summer of 2007. And that a CBC station can hold their own in the marketplace has been demonstrated in spades elsewhere in Canada – case in point Ottawa and Toronto where their outlets has been top-finishers for years.

Finishing in the top four morning shows with Edmonton AM is Ron Wilson, commanding a 9.5 share (up from 7.0 a year ago).

CFCW - 6.6 (6.7, 6.5)

CFCW placed a dependable seventh in the Edmonton market but the station's strength is in its rural reach. But that loyalty may soon be tested when 790 on your dial (where it's been since 1961) moves to 840 in hopes of a more reliable city signal.

The CRTC approved the station's request for a frequency change while the current survey was underway, having argued that 790 khz no longer penetrates concrete and steel as it once did (despite 790 being a near clear channel, allowing it to be heard almost continent-wide).

Which makes one wonder if the switch to 840 is more about the switch to a more aggressive plan to carve out some CISN territory.

Meantime, Sharon Mallon and Danny Hooper hang onto seventh place when the rooster crows with a 6.8 share (7.4 in fall 2007).

CKRA - 96.3 Capital FM - 6.4 (6.9, 2.4)

Despite scoring the Edmonton radio coup of the century (all eight years of it, so far) Capital FM's numbers actually dipped from the summer with the re-teaming of Mighty 630 personalities Rob Christie and Audie Lynds.

Was it that their former fans and a younger generation tired quickly of their re-runs of old CHED schtick, or was it that the oldies crowd remains finite in numbers? After all, outside the drive hours the station is jockless, suggesting it's the music that matters most.

Whatever Capital FM's numbers suggest, the 96.3 frequency is country miles ahead of where it was in the fall of 2007 and seems poised to remain a serious contender in the safe at work and easy at home market.

However, Rob and Audie need to work a bit harder to restore the magic: their show ranked tenth in the mornings with a 5.1 (way up from the station's 1.6 as Big Earl). Demographically and understandably, CKRA did best in the 35-64 age group. Both men and women ranked it third, 13.6 and 10.7, respectively.

CKNG - Joe FM - 6.1 (5.1, 8.7)

What was fresh in 2004 seems to be same old same old in 2008. The once-winning "play anything" format seems to be stuck in the vice grip of familiarity, with serious fans of one genre or another drifting elsewhere (either The Bear or Capitol FM).

While up a bit from their recent nadir of 5.1, for Corus it's not the same old JOE, once a consistent top-five finisher.

Global Edmonton TV anchor J'lyn Nye joined the station's morning show on September 29th – nearly a month into the fall ratings period – so it remains to be seen if she can help lift the station out of their continuing ratings doldrum (after all, she does have a background in bodybuilding).

J'lyn and Rhubarb Jones hang onto eight spot in the morning show rankings, grabbing a 5.6 share (last year Jones and Audie Lynds snagged an 8.7). The station's best demos came from the 25-34 group where women placed it first with a 22.5, but for men it was the 35-44 group who placed it fourth with a 9.2)

CHDI - Sonic FM - 4.8 (6.3, 4.8)

Once a wunderkind, Sonic's edgy sound seems no match for the strength of demo stablemate The Bounce.

However, Rogers – Sonic's owner – seems confident enough in the format to use it as a template for their re-tooling of some stations down east. But Edmonton is a different case for the national broadcaster, best known for its winning all-news format.

Despite being turned down in their recent application to operate a live 24-hour news station in competition with Corus' iNews880 (which plundered the Rogers format used elsewhere), Rogers has indicated it remains committed to bringing its all-news format to the provincial capital.

Whether that means waiting out their specialty licence renewal for CKER World FM ... or sacrificing the under-performing Sonic sound remains to be seen.

As they say, stay tuned. In the meantime, Sonic folk should keep their resumes up-to-date and their airchecks fresh.

Garner Andrews' morning show places ninth in the city with a 5.2, up from 4.5 this time last year. Sonic did best placing third in the 18-34 demo, with men providing a 12.0 share and women a 13.8.

CIRK - K-97 - 4.4 (5.7, 5.9)

Despite the return of Terry Evans, despite the return to the station's heritage K-97 moniker ... and despite the tweaking of the playlist ... what the hell happened to the former K-Rock audience?

The late-summer re-assignment of shifts seems to have had little effect on renewing interest in the station, leading some to suggest there's only room for one classic rock sound in town. After all, the audience for Led Zeppelin, Queen, Aerosmith and Metallica is either dying off or growing too old to care.

What lies ahead is a test of wills and programming skills: Ryan Zimmerman at The Bear versus Pat Cardinal at K-97's Newcap management. For the folks at CIRK a staring contest seems to be in the works. All Hawaiian music anyone?

While Evans can't be expected carry a whole station, he should be carry his own numbers with his morning show. However, it placed eleventh with a 4.5 (he garnered a 5.8 when he first returned to K-Rock in 2007). Overall, the station did best in the broad 25-54 age male demo (fourth with a 9.8) and with women 35-44 (seventh with a 6.3).

CKUA - 3.0 (3.9, 2.7)

A consistent performer, CKUA's thirteenth-place/3.0 share showing is noteworthy not only for its own achievement, but rather for how high the station has ranked above some other commercial outlets in town – specifically a smooth jazz station and an all-news outlet backed by a major player in the market.

The listener-supported station did best at the lower end of the demos: women 18-24 place it seventh with a 3.1 share while men 18-34 rate it sixth with a 5.6.

CBX FM - CBC Radio 2 - 2.3 (1.7, 2.1)

Despite the hoo-hah surrounding the abandonment of the broadcaster's core classical music audience, CBC Radio 2 seems to be holding its own. But given the small audience size at the lower end of the survey sample, it will take another book or two to determine the frequency's true placing.

CHMC - Magic 99 - 1.7 (2.1, 2.8)

Could it get any worse for the Rawlco-owned station? Never a factor in the market, with a music format that defied description, loyalty or interest, Magic 99 lost its only drawing card when Rob Christie jumped to Capital FM just as the fall survey began.

Stepping away from the Global Edmonton traffic watch board and into the Magic 99 void, longtime local radio veteran Shannon Tyler parked herself beside Duncan Paterson in the vacant morning chair. Tyler brings with her loads of experience (CISN, CFMG EZ Rock, CKEM-TV aka A-Channel, and CKRA) but whether she can bring any luck to the station remains to be seen.

Look for sale rumours to get stirred up again. Rogers for one would be a willing buyer, looking for a place to launch their all-news operation (Magic's specialty licence comes up for renewal April 5th, 2009). But then again, the CRTC did approve Rawlco's application for a sister-operation with an adult contemporary hit radio sound. Maybe the second time will be the charm ...

And who knows? Magic 99's "Smooth Jazz" brand might someday end up being a local radio in-joke, like 'quality programming' or 'known unknowns.' It certainly didn't work as a format.

And for Tyler and Paterson, thirteenth place in the mornings was saved for them with their 1.3 share, down 2.0 from the year before. The station's best demographic seems to be women 35-54 who placed it tenth with a 3.0 share but males the same age placed it thirteenth with a 1.6

CFRN - The Team - 1.5 (1.8, 1.6)

The all-sports talk station with no live sports to broadcast is another candidate for revelation when the PPMs are introduced. Some have figured their audience is much larger than numbers have shown and the strong male demographic may also pleasantly surprise advertisers.

But in a town where Corus has the broadcast rights to the two biggest local teams locked up, The Team may always have to settle for farm league ratings action. Could it ever happen that the Oilers would consider moving their show up the dial? Possibly but not likely ... and for a purely technical reason: the frequency.

CHED's 630 khz signal more than booms across northern Alberta, while The Team's 1260 barely makes it to the nearest horizon. In the graphic below, CHED's audience measures 201,000 for the city, but reaches another 66,000 out of town. And those kind of numbers make the difference for advertisers.

The Team's morning show of Bryn Griffiths and Jake Daniels grabbed the city's twelfth spot with a 1.7 share (down from last year's 2.0). The station does best with males 25-34, earning eighth place with a 6.1 share.

CHQT - iNews 880 - 1.0 (0.6, 3.8 as Cool 880)

And then there is the Corus experiment known as iNews880.

While the upcoming PPMs may indicate stronger numbers, capturing the hit-and-run listening nature scenario its audience likely favours, one would have thought the station would have garnered a stronger showing during its first full book.

After all, big news items such as fall elections on both sides of the border, in addition to the usual local mayhem of murder and civic politics, should have fielded something better than a 1.0 (granted, they did nearly double their audience).

Inside the Corus compound hallways on ratings release day it was heard that the company was committed to losing money for about seven years with iNews880. By then, at the current rate of staff turnover, western Canada will run out of newsreaders who haven't yet worked at iNews.

Too bad the station wasn't committed instead to good journalism, with experienced reporters in the field breaking stories of note.

The 'citizen reporter' aspect of the station has produced mixed results (good stories will fetch 88 bucks so send them in) and as far as revolutionising the internet goes... they have managed to find a way to clutter up the #YEG search on Twitter with every wire story under the sun (and some from the Sun) no matter how irrelevant they are to Edmonton. To block iNews880 from your Twitter, use this url.

The station's plight caused one iNews insider to reflect, "Not sure if CHQT is still anything more than a way to keep Rogers out of the news biz ..."

If that's the case, the station's high staff costs make for an expensive way to keep somebody else doing nothing.

And with the economy's recent downturn, there are a lot of gloomy faces on some of the more senior staff. Perhaps iNews880 should ask for some federal bailout money – now there would be a story!

Demographically, the station once known for its oldies was favoured most by males 35-44 who rated it eleventh with a 1.2 share.

CHFA - Radio Canada - 0.2 (0.0, 0.0)

After not showing up on the BBM radar for a while, at least one survey seems to have found its way into the hands of a listener this time around.

For more detailed data about the Fall 2008 book, read the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement report (opens as a .pdf) or the Astral Media Radio Sales report (which also opens as a .pdf). General demographic data can be seen in this snapshot taken from Broadcaster Magazine.

The results of the next Edmonton ratings period (January 5th to March 1st) were released April 2nd, 2009.

<< summer 2008 | main radio ratings archive page | spring 2009 >>

radio - edmonton ratings archives - fall 2008