92.9 The Game in Atlanta enjoyed an impressive quarter to launch their 2020 campaign. The Entercom owned sports radio station finished second overall during the winter book, posting an 8.4 share among Men 25-54 in the M-F 6a-Midnight demo.
In morning drive, John Fricke and Hugh Douglas finished second for the book with a 7.3. The Game’s midday show with Andy Bunker and Randy McMichael finished fourth, but their 8.5 rating was just 0.3 away from the second spot. The station’s popular afternoon drive show hosted by Carl Dukes and Mike Bell posted a strong 9.0 and were just half a point away from finishing first for the winter book.
95.5 WSB Atlanta’s News Talk enjoyed a clean sweep for the quarter in mornings, midday and afternoons, finishing first in all three timeslots, totaling a 10.9 in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p). 92.9 The Game did finish first with their nighttime show hosted by John Chuckery. The 7p-11p host took over the program full-time last summer and finished 1st overall in the winter book with a 9.8.
The winter ratings period extends from Jan. 2 through March 25, meaning most of the book took place before the COVID-19 pandemic forced live sports to shutdown March 11. During the quarter’s final two weeks, news/talk saw an increase in listenership as the COVID-19 pandemic became a growing issue in the United States. It will be interesting to see how the virus continues to impact ratings for news talk stations such as WSB during the spring book.
92.9 The Game’s ratings depict a strong finish for program director Terry Foxx who was unfortunately laid off earlier this month. The layoffs were part of Entercom’s cost cutting efforts as an attempt to combat economic impacts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Foxx helped launch The Game in 2012, building the station from the ground up to compete with Atlanta’s 680 The Fan.
680 The Fan does not subscribe to Nielsen ratings, but according to data, the station’s top performing show for the winter book was their afternoon drive duo Chuck and Chernoff. While Atlanta’s top two sports stations feature different business models, their ability to generate money remains more important than Nielsen numbers, especially during an unprecedented shutdown.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
