The spring book ratings results are in for New York City, and there are two people who should especially feel good about what was produced. First, Mark Chernoff. The longtime program director for FAN recently exited the station, and in his final book, he can look back fondly and know he went out the way he started, on top.
Secondly is Spike Eskin. The new PD arrives on the scene and takes the reigns of a brand he knows is built to win. With a roster full of performers, and NY sports storylines producing drama and interest on a regular basis, listener interest should remain high going forward.
But as far as the spring book is concerned, WFAN was strong across the board in the Men 25-54 demo. The station finished 3rd overall in weekday prime (M-F 6a-7p) with a 5.8 share (radio and stream combined). 98.7 ESPN NY finished the quarter in 9th with a 3.7 share. Their number always includes their radio and streaming numbers.
In the weekday head to head matchups, Boomer & Gio delivered the best performance for the quarter among any sports talk show. The WFAN morning team produced an impressive 6.9 share to finish 2nd overall in mornings. 98.7 ESPN NY was 9th from 6a-10a with a 3.6 share. The trio of Chris Canty, Rick DiPietro and Dave Rothenberg actually performed well, picking up a 5.1 share to place 5th during the 6a-8a hours. ESPN Radio’s Keyshawn, J-Will and Zubin were in the mid 3’s though which brought down the overall number for the quarter.
Turning to middays, Maggie Gray and Marc Malusis were strong for WFAN as well. They finished 3rd for the quarter, thanks to a 5.3 share. 98.7 ESPN NY’s combo of Mike Greenberg’s two-hour national show, and Bart Scott & Alan Hahn (Hahn missed some shows due to filling in for Zubin in mornings) produced a 3.2 share, good enough for 8th place.
In the competitive and visible battle among afternoon drive heavyweights, WFAN’s team of Craig Carton and Evan Roberts reigned supreme for the spring book. Carton & Roberts finished 3rd overall with a 5.7 share. The Michael Kay Show meanwhile generated a 4.0 share for 98.7 ESPN NY, placing them 7th.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
Despite years of trying and being on the Laker’s station, Key-clown never once beat Dan Patrick in an LA book…
Putting him on a National morning show should be considered as criminal malpractice!