The latest radio ratings – survey 6 – which covered all of the Olympics and the lead-up to the election
campaign (June 27 to September 4), are out:


Sydney


2GB remains on top in Sydney but The
Parrot slipped from 16.7 to 15.5 and the station overall slipped from
13.8 to 12.6, suggesting being the “official” Olympic station didn’t
help much. What a bunch of “spastics”.

Mike Carlton has been
rewarded for his strong Olympic performance, lifting the 2UE breakfast
ratings from 8.4 to 9.1 as the overall station rose from 8.4 to 8.9.
Steve Price remains 2UE’s worst performer but even he managed a slight
gain to 7.7 as he contemplates not having his $1 million a year
contract renewed at the end of the year.

Austereo’s 2Day FM
picked itself off the canvas as Judith Lucy’s Breakfast shift recovered
from 5.9 to 7.1, lifting the overall result from 7.4 to 8.6 – still a
disappointing equal fourth for what was once Australia’s most
profitable station with annual revenue of almost $30 million.

    Melbourne

    In Melbourne, there wasn’t a lot of change.

    3AW remained on top with a rise from
    15.5 to 15.7, led by its all-conquering Breakfast team which dipped
    slightly from 19.6 to 19.4. Derryn Hinch may be
    hated at the station for outing the late David Hookes for leaving his
    wife, but he’s safe again as his ratings rose from 14.9 to 15.1.

    The Red Symons
    Breakfast shift on ABC 774 gained from 12.9 to 13.8 and the woman he
    replaced, Lynne Haultain, remains under pressure but did rise from 6.6
    to 7.4 as the overall station rose from 10.1 to 10.6.

      Adelaide

      Just two surveys ago Adelaide’s ABC 891 was arguably Aunty’s worst performing local
      station – lagging far behind talk rival 5AA with just 8.4 per cent of the overall audience. However, it has now knocked off ABC
      Melbourne with a rise from 9.7 to 10.9, claiming the title of Aunty’s
      most popular local station which is usually shared between Perth and
      Melbourne, although it still didn’t make up much ground on 5AA which also had strong gains (up from 14.9 to 16.0).

      And South Australian talk radio fan Ada Laide writes:

      “Who will the Prime Minister talk to next time he’s in Adelaide? His
      favourite shockjock, cash for comment pioneer Jeremy Cordeaux, has
      suffered a stunning crash in the latest rating. He was only scoring
      seven per cent in the last survey. Now he’s fallen to 3.8.”

      Still, not all sins go unpunished in the City of Churches. We notice
      that Cordeaux’s rival at 5AA Leon Byner, himself the current subject of
      an ABA investigation, has jumped almost two points – up to a 13.4 per
      cent audience share from 11.5.

      Brisbane

      ABC 612 in Brisbane also had a strong survey, increasing its
      overall audience share from 7.6 to 9.3, easily beating talk radio rival
      Southern Cross’s 4BC, which saw its audience drop sharply from 9.1 to
      7.7.

      But the real power in Brisbane is still Austereo’s double act: B105 FM
      (17.4) and Triple M (up from 13.8 to 15.7), which filled the top two spots overall.


      Perth

      There was better news for Southern Cross in Perth where 6PR (up
      from 7.2 to 8.8) made up ground on ABC 720, which relinquished its
      status as the ABC’s most popular local station to Adelaide as it fell
      from 11.3 to 10.1.

      Austereo’s MIX 94.5 stayed on top overall – increasing its audience share from 19.3 to 20.3.


      Market response

      The sixth rating survey of the year produced a muted response from
      investors with APN up 5c to $4.48, Austereo up 1c to $1.40 and Southern
      Cross broadcasting up 1c to $12.51.