In January, 1010 WINS beat 106.7 Lite FM in the New York radio ratings, marking the first time a station other than Lite earned the top spot in 41 ratings periods.
And it took a monumental ratings effort to earn the top spot. 1010 WINS earned a 7.5 share in the 6+ demographic. That marked the highest share for the Audacy New York all-news brand since 1968.
If you’re setting new highs not seen in nearly 60 years, you’re doing something right. 1010 WINS Director of News and Programming Ben Mevorach said it’s been a long time in the making.
“It’s like when a movie star or an artist suddenly bursts onto the scene, and they say, ‘Well, you’re an overnight sensation.’ Yeah, 17 years in the making!” Mevorach said with a laugh. “All of a sudden, we’re number one. We’ve been working that way for I don’t know how many — as long as I’ve been at the station, that’s been our goal. So, it’s obviously very satisfying. The team feels great, and it’s a really great win for the staff.”
He admitted that knocking off 106.7 Lite FM made the win “a little sweeter”, simply because of that brand’s sheer dominance in the market for so long. “I don’t know if that’ll ever be repeated,” Mevorach said of the 41 consecutive ratings wins for the station. “I have nothing but respect (for them).”
January was a busy month in New York. Harsh winter weather affected the city throughout the month. Furthermore, Zohran Mamdani — the polarizing political figure elected to the city’s top office — was sworn in as Mayor.
While those were major stories, Mevorach believes that the station was uniquely positioned to handle those news events and capitalize on them.
“In New York, it’s certainly more common than anywhere else in the country that stories just sort of bubble up to become either national stories or are bigger than life,” he shared. “So there’s no question that the election of the mayor, the snowstorm, those are all contributing factors. But I will always say that if you don’t execute on those stories that are there — it’s not enough just to have the story. You have got to have the team in place that understands, and executes, and is relatable and all those things. “I spend a lot of time, in particular with my anchors and my reporters to try to get them to understand that we are storytellers, journalism with a capital J, but they have to be relatable.”
He pointed to a recent report from reporter Sophia Hall, where she asked a Long Island resident when they thought the snow would melt. That citizen said “June,” to which she exasperatively responded “June?!” That lighthearted moment, Mevorach asserted, mimicked the response and feeling from 1010 WINS listeners.
“Something like that little moment there — who can’t relate to that? That’s what I’ve been trying to teach them to do on a regular basis,” he shared.
Another factor into the ratings victory for 1010 WINS was the simulcast on 92.3 FM. More than three years since taking over the signal, it’s been an undeniable success for both Audacy and the all-news brand. Ben Mevorach believes that Audacy Chief Business Officer and New York Market President Chris Oliviero deserves strong praise for his belief in the move.
“Chris said, ‘Look, if we’re going to even the playing field in this market, we’ve got to move WINS to FM.’ That, in and of itself, was an incredibly bold move,” said Mevorach. “There’s this whole Greek thing that people hate me when I say, but the fish rots from the head. Chris, as the head of the fish, really sets the tone for everyone.”
Mevorach shared that the members of the 1010 WINS staff feel seen and heard by station and market leadership. That culture, he believes, has propelled it to the top spot in the New York ratings.
“People put in so much time and effort to get it right, and to have the head guy say, ‘Listen, I see you. I see what you’re doing, and we appreciate it, and I support you’? That magical,” Mevorach said. “Then you take that, and you have a vision, and you try to create a culture that supports the vision. Sometimes everything sounds so simple. But if it were that simple, everybody would get to the top. So it’s not as simple as this kind of thing, but that’s sort of the secret sauce.”
Mevorach himself played no small part in the surge to the top spot. He was recently voted as the number one major market news/talk radio Program Director in Barrett Media’s 2025 Top 20 series. An ever humble figure, Ben Mevorach admitted that it was an honor to be recognized by his peers and those within the industry.
“I deeply appreciate it,” he said of the honor. “To me, it’s the respect that I treasure. I hope that people know that I treat them the way that I’d like to be treated myself … I’m just grateful. I’m just completely grateful for that.”
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
How could you not mention that their rival news station WCBS was shut down in 2024? That’s the biggest reason along with the fact that their stream is now included with their over the air rating