The twice-yearly ritual of rating the Boise radio market ended last month. And now, the results from Nielsen Audio are in.
Among the widest demographic measure, people 12 years and older, Impact Radio’s 101.9 The Bull beat all other stations to take the crown. It saw a significant increase from the spring of 2019 – rising from a 4.5 share to 6.3 share.
In second place Townsquare Media’s 107.9 Lite FM. That station, which plays pop music aimed at adults most of the time flipped to Christmas music in November for the last portion of the ratings period. It more than doubled its spring share – from a 2.7 to a 6.2. The station also saw a challenger in its format for the first time, Magic 97.9 FM. That station was flat from its previous country format.
[Changes on the airwaves at four Boise radio stations]
Third place went to KBSX, 91.5 FM – Boise State Public Radio’s NPR outlet. It also saw a strong increase, from 3.7 to 5.6.
Radio ratings
The share number represents the percentage of listeners listening to a station at any given time.
For example, if 100,000 people are listening to the radio, and a station gets a 4.5 – that means 4500 people were listening, on average. The bigger the number, the higher the rate a station can charge for ads. Nielsen publicly releases “12+” ratings, but subscribing advertisers and stations can slice by timeslot and demographic.
In Boise, Nielsen measures ratings twice each year, in the spring and fall
Another Impact station, Wild 101 took fourth place, with a 5.2 share – its best result in two years. Stalwart news station KBOI-AM, owned by Cumulus Media, notched a 5.0. Impact’s 96.1 Bob FM also pulled down a 5.0.
Among the commercial radio groups in town, Impact Radio saw the best result far and away. The only locally owned broadcaster grabbed 24.5 share. Second place Townsquare Media lagged far behind at 16.0. Cumulus Media came in third at 15.9. Lotus Communications, formerly Scripps had a 13 share of the market.
Fall 2019 Boise Radio Ratings
| Station | Owner | Fall ’19 share, 12+ |
| 101.9 The Bull | Impact | 6.3 |
| 107.9 Lite Fm | Townsquare | 6.2 |
| KBSX 91.5 | Boise State | 5.6 |
| Wild 101 | Impact | 5.2 |
| News Talk 670 | Cumulus | 5.0 |
| 96.1 Bob FM | Impact | 5.0 |
| 96.9 The Eagle | Cumulus | 4.7 |
| KTSY-FM | Non-comm | 4.1 |
| 100.3 The X | Lotus | 3.9 |
| 94.9 The River | Lotus | 3.9 |
| My 102.7 | Impact | 3.5 |
| KIDO Talk Radio | Townsquare | 3.0 |
| 107.1 K-Hits | Lotus | 2.8 |
| KBSU Classical | Boise State | 2.4 |
| J-105 | Lotus | 2.4 |
| 103.5 Kiss FM | Townsquare | 2.4 |
| 93.1 KTIK | Cumulus | 2.2 |
| Mix 106 | Townsquare | 2.1 |
| Magic 97.9 | Cumulus | 2.1 |
| 104.3 Wow Country | Townsquare | 1.9 |
| Kissin 92.3 | Cumulus | 1.9 |
Disclosure: I’m a semi-regular unpaid contributor to KBSX’s Idaho Matters program.
