This radio station ‘juggernaut’ owns #1, while others nosedived. Here are Boise ratings
Death, taxes and The Bull at No. 1.
Those are life’s certainties for Boise radio listeners. Each time the Nielsen Audio ratings are released, it’s a familiar story for the market-dominating country station.
The Nielsens, which measure listener share, come out twice a year. In the newly released spring book, 101.9 FM has no peer. The Bull’s share is an impressive 6.4 among all listeners 12 and older, aka 12-plus — the overall bragging-rights category. The next closest station is Bob FM with a 4.9.
The Bull and Bob are owned by Idaho-based Iliad Media Group. “The Bull has been a juggernaut,“ said Iliad CEO Darrell Calton. “We have been fortunate to field and retain a passionate team of experienced, local programmers and talent from the first day we launched it in 2014. Local matters.”
The Bull also tied for first place in the 25- to 54-year-old demographic, which advertisers value highly. The other top 25-54 station was hard-rockin’ 100.3 The X.
The brand that made the biggest jump in 12-plus finished third. You might remember it as K-Hits 107.1 FM. Flipping formats in May after 22 years, it became Hank FM, “Idaho’s real country.” The new format caught over half of the spring survey period. And the result transformed a 2.7 last fall into a 4.4 this spring.
While The Bull kept raging steadily in 12-plus, a handful of other stations nosedived. Nobody face-planted two full points, but a couple came close. Those included conservative news-talk station KBOI-AM (3.8 share) and adult contemporary format Lite FM (3.3). Yet both remained strong enough to finish in the top 10. And Lite was the third-best station in 25-54.
One final disclaimer: When there are wild swings in audience-diary surveys, they probably should be viewed with healthy skepticism. Station managers normally don’t panic over a single lousy Nielsen book. Still, there’s a reason that stations pay for access to this data; it shines a spotlight on listening trends.
Spring 12-plus numbers
Below is the Treasure Valley breakdown. These are stations’ quarter-hour shares among listeners 12 and older between 6 a.m. and midnight.
▪ KQBL-FM 101.9 (The Bull, country, Iliad Media Group): 6.4
▪ KSRV-FM 96.1 (Bob, variety hits, Iliad Media Group): 4.9
▪ KTHI-FM 107.1 (Hank FM, classic country, Lotus Boise): 4.4
▪ KQXR-FM 100.3 (The X, active rock, Lotus Boise): 4.0
▪ KZMG-FM 102.7 (My 102.7, hot AC, Iliad Media Group): 4.0
▪ KBOI-AM 670 (news/talk, Cumulus Media): 3.8
▪ KSAS-FM 103.5 (Kiss FM, contemporary hits, Townsquare Media): 3.8
▪ KBSX-FM 91.5 (public radio, Boise State): 3.3
▪ KKOO-AM 1260 (101.5 Kool FM, classic hits, Iliad Media Group): 3.3
▪ KXLT-FM 107.9 (Lite FM, adult contemporary, Townsquare Media): 3.3
▪ KIDO-AM 580 (news/talk, Townsquare Media): 3.1
▪ KWYD-FM 101.1 (Wild 101.1, rhythmic contemporary hits, Iliad Media Group): 3.1
▪ KAWO-FM 104.3 (Wow country, Townsquare Media): 2.9
▪ KBSU-FM 90.3 (classical, Boise State): 2.9
▪ KJOT-FM 105.1 (Jack, variety hits, Lotus Boise): 2.9
▪ KKGL-FM 96.9 (The Eagle, classic rock, Cumulus Media): 2.9
▪ KTSY-FM 89.5 (Christian contemporary, Idaho Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists: 2.9
▪ KIZN-FM 92.3 (Kissin’ 92.3, country, Cumulus Media): 2.7
▪ KCIX-FM 105.9 (Mix 106, Hot AC, Townsquare Media): 1.8
▪ KQFC-FM 97.9 (Magic 97.9, adult contemporary, Cumulus Media): 1.8
▪ KQBL-FM HD2 99.1 (I-Rock, Iliad Media Group): 1.5
▪ KTIK-AM 1350 (sports, Cumulus Media): 1.5
▪ KQBL-FM HD3 96.5 (The Alternative, alternative rock, Iliad Media Group): 1.3
▪ KRVB-FM 94.9 (The River, adult album alternative, Lotus Boise): 1.3
▪ KFXD-AM 630 (Power 105.5, urban contemporary): 0.9
▪ KOAY-FM 88.7 (Christian contemporary, Idaho Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists): 0.7
▪ KSRV-FM HD2 99.9 (Fox Sports, Iliad Media Group): 0.2
This story was originally published July 31, 2024 at 4:00 AM.