Changes attributed to musical tastes

By Joe Hadsall

jhadsall@joplinglobe.com

Hannah Montana may be partly responsible for a local radio station’s ratings surge.

KSYN-FM, a top-40 radio station owned by Zimmer Radio Group, received the biggest increase in the spring 2008 listening period, according to Arbitron Inc. ratings released this month. The station jumped from a 7.3 overall share in the previous fall 2007 ratings period to an 11 share, the No. 2 spot on the list.

KIXQ-FM, a Zimmer station with a country format, remained at the top of the Joplin market with a 12.1 rating, down from a 14.6 share in the fall.

KSYN’s increase and KIXQ’s decrease can be attributed to listeners’ musical preferences, said Chad Elliot, operations manager for Zimmer.

“It’s a cycle that radio goes through,” Elliot said. “Right now is the perfect time for KSYN. ‘High School Musical’ and Hannah Montana are big, and country doesn’t have a home-run hitter like Garth Brooks right now.”

Arbitron releases certain ratings information to the public, said Jessica Benbow, a spokeswoman for the company. She said Arbitron determines ratings using an average of the past two ratings periods, so what is known as the spring 2008 period actually combines the spring 2008 and fall 2007 results, while the fall 2007 period combined fall and spring 2007 results.

“It gives the ratings more stability,” Benbow said.

The ratings reflect the listening habits of people 12 and older, listening between 6 a.m. and midnight.

Zimmer’s other two music stations — adult contemporary KJMK-FM and classic rock KXDG-FM — rounded out the top four spots on the latest list.

KMXL-FM, an adult-hits station owned by Carthage resident Ron Petersen, finished fifth with a 6.4 share.

Tower collapse

A tower collapse may have affected the latest round of ratings.