Differing systems show KXDD, KIT tops on airwaves

YAKIMA, Wash. -- Despite differences in methodology, recent ratings from Arbitron and Eastlan Ratings show similarities in the way audiences listen to local stations.

KXDD-FM, a country music station, and KIT-AM, a news talk radio station, continue to show a solid standing under both ratings systems.

KXDD and KIT are ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the spring 2010 Arbitron numbers with a rating share of 9.5 and 8.3, respectively. KXDD is owned by Seattle-based New Northwest Broadcasters and KIT is owned by Greenwich, Conn.-based Townsquare Media.

The ratings share measures the percentage of people 12 and older who listen to a radio station in any given 15-minute period. It also measures how long they listen to that station.

Arbitron gets its ratings from responses in a written diary format while Eastlan surveys participants over the phone.

KIT-AM is ranked No. 1 in the spring 2010 Eastlan ratings with a ratings share of 11.4. Under the same ratings, KXDD ranks third with a share of 7.7. Sneaking into the No. 2 spot is KHHK-FM, a New Northwest Broadcasters-owned urban contemporary hits station known by its listeners as Hot 99.7.

The ranking for KHHK, which had a rating of 8.5, reflects the fact that many listeners 12 and older are young and prefer the music played on the station, said Dewey Boynton, who is New Northwest Broadcasters' operations manager in Yakima and morning show host for KXDD.

Townsquare Media's Top 40 station KFFM-FM, known as 107.3 KFFM, also fared well in both ratings systems. It's ranked No. 3 with a 7.1 rating in Arbitron's numbers while it rounds out the top 5 in the Eastlan ratings with a 6.1 rating.

That's good news for the station, which had been out of the top five for several ratings periods.

The improved standing for KFFM affirms the decision of GapWest Broadcasting, which operated the radio station at the time, to go back to a Top 40 music format about a year ago, said Cheryl A. Salomone, Yakima market manager for Townsquare Media, which now owns the Yakima stations.

"The combo of getting away from the rhythmic party station (format) and going to mainstream pop has helped (KFFM) tremendously," she said. "It's more palatable to the mass audience."