January 27, 1985 – Nostalgia comes to the battlefield. As KIXI-AM climbs in the ratings with its blend of big-band and contemporary music, a second big-band format has appeared. The new KARR, 1460 kHz., signed on in December with a syndicated music package called “The Music of Your Life.” Standard fare includes big-band music and vocalists such as Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Andy Williams. KARR previously was KGAA
Bernard Clark is station manager and one of the investors in Pro Circuit Inc., which also owns a station in Reno, Nev.
Clark said the station expects to attract listeners age 35 to 65. “It’s a special group of listeners, one that we think advertisers need to learn about.”
The “Music of Your Life” format was developed by Al Ham, an ad man who once played in the Tex Beneke and Glenn Miller Orchestra.
The format is heard on 150 stations across the country. It aired once before in Seattle _ at KIXI-AM. It disappeared after a disagreement over price. Clark said there is no prospect of another such dispute.
Add KVI to the ratings list
There’s more than one way to look at the quarterly ratings of radio stations. Newspapers print totals. Station managers and advertisers look at narrower demographic groups.
The “12 plus” figures, counting all listeners over age 12, are a benchmark of success. But in a previous listing of the fall Arbitrons, I didn’t even have a chair for KVI. With its new solid-gold format, KVI got a comfortable 3.2 share of the audience; that placed it No. 11 in the list of Seattle’s favorites. Appearing here is a revised Arbitron list.
The Birch Radio Ratings also were conducted October-through-December and ratings were distributed to subscribing stations only two days after the Arbitrons. Arbitrons are the industry standard, but stations that subscribe to Birch praise the alternate service.
The third chart here shows what a station can do with ratings.
Some station managements combine ratings of AM and FM stations. This “combo” selling changes the ratings considerably, and makes a different top 20 for advertisers to ponder.
Former radio columnist for the Seattle Times (1964-1989).
— View other articles by Victor Stredicke
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