ABC Radio National’s breakfast program, hosted by Patricia Karvelas, has lost a large slice of its audience in the past year

The latest survey shows soft audience numbers for ABC’s Radio National, just weeks after the broadcaster’s chair Kim Williams took aim at the organisation’s radio division.

ABC Radio National breakfast host Patricia Karvelas. Picture: Aaron Francis/The Australian

ABC Radio National’s listenership continues to dwindle, with its soft ratings likely to concern the organisation’s chair Kim Williams who last month took the extraordinary step of addressing RN staff to lament the failure to prioritise globally important news stories in favour of lifestyle content.

Radio National’s flagship program, Breakfast with Patricia Karvelas, has lost a sizeable chunk of its audience over the past twelve months, according to latest figures from GfK, the official provider of radio ratings.

The poll shows her program now has 79,000 listeners in Sydney, down from 100,000 in the corresponding survey in 2023.

Karvelas has 64,000 daily listeners in Melbourne, according to the ratings survey released on Tuesday, well down on the 94,000-strong audience she boasted this time last year.

Despite the fall in the number of listeners over the past year, Karvelas slightly increased her audience share – the percentage of the total radio audience during a given period – in Melbourne and Sydney by 0.1 percentage points over the past three months.

Earlier this month, Mr Williams caused a stir when it emerged that he had directly addressed Radio National staff about the department’s failure to prioritise hard news over softer lifestyle content.

“I think I make no apology for the fact I think news should be prioritised appropriately. Sorry if that’s unsatisfying,” he reportedly told Radio National staff during the meeting.

Meanwhile, ABC Radio Sydney has lost audience share across every timeslot since May, according to the GfK survey, with the station falling even further behind its commercial rivals.

The poor results come just over a year since an internal advisory group presented the ABC board with a series of sweeping recommendations as to how to revive the fortunes of the broadcaster’s radio division, which has suffered a dramatic slide in its audience numbers across the country since the end of the pandemic in 2021.

ABC Sydney’s once dominant drive program, hosted by Richard Glover, now sits in eighth position in the timeslot, claiming just 5.3 per cent market share, down by 1.4 percentage points.

ABC Sydney drive presenter Richard Glover. Source: Instagram.

The station recorded similarly sharp falls across its morning and afternoons programs, while its breakfast show hosted by Craig Reucassel – which had made some gains in the previous survey – slipped by 0.2 percentage points to a market share of 7.9 per cent.

But the news is somewhat better for ABC Radio Melbourne.

All of the public broadcaster’s weekday programs in the Victorian capital experienced ratings lifts in the latest survey, including mornings with Rafael Epstein, with his audience share climbing from 6.5 per cent to 7.3.

ABC Melbourne breakfast host, comedian Sammy “J” McMillan, enjoyed a jump in audience share of 0.9 percentage points to 8.2 per cent.

Nine Entertainment’s 3AW continues to dominate Melbourne, with its breakfast hosts Russel Howcroft and Ross Stevenson recording an audience share of 21.3 per cent (up 2.5 percentage points) and mornings host Tom Elliott claiming an 18.1 per cent share of the market (up 2.3).

The arrival of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson into the Melbourne market four months ago has not yet had a noticeable impact, with the duo recording an audience share of 6.1 per cent (up 0.2 percentage points on the previous survey).

Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson began broadcasting into Melbourne in April. Source: Instagram: @jackieo_official.

However, the controversial pair from KIIS1065 managed to grow their audience in Sydney in the latest survey period recording a 14.3 per cent market share (up 0.2), allowing them to close the gap on perennial rival Ben Fordham.

2GB’s Fordham maintained the top spot in the prestigious timeslot with a 15.6 per cent share of the market (down 1.4 percentage points on the previous survey).

Ray Hadley, who presents the morning show on 2GB, won his 159th consecutive radio ratings poll, with an audience share of 15.7 per cent (down from 16.4 per cent).

Hadley remains well ahead of KIIS1065’s morning show, which jumped by 2.9 percentage points this survey to record an audience share of 12 per cent.

At Brisbane’s Nine-owned 4BC, the breakfast show hosted by Laurel Edwards, Mark Hine and Gary Clare has recorded its worst result since the trio was appointed to the key timeslot two years ago, returning an audience share of 4.3 per cent, down 0.5.

During this period the 4BC show’s audience has nearly halved, from 151,000 listeners to 79,000. It is understood the trio’s contract finishes in December and is not expected to be renewed.

4BC also experienced ratings falls in all other timeslots, despite the fact that the survey covered the fortnight of the Paris Olympics, for which Nine had the broadcast rights.

4BC now sits eighth in the overall station ratings race in Brisbane.

The B105 breakfast show hosted by Stav Davidson, Abby Coleman and Matty Acton maintained top spot in the crucial timeslot, with an audience share of 15 per cent.

In Perth Nova 93.7’s breakfast program hosted Nathan Morris, Natalie Locke and Shaun McManus remained the most popular program in the timeslot with an audience share of 16.9 per cent (down 1.6 points).

In Adelaide, Triple M’s breakfast show led by Mark Ricciuto, Chris Dittmar and Laura Callagan was the top-rating program in the timeslot with an audience share of 12.3 per cent, down 2.2, followed by ABC Adelaide’s Jules Schiller and Sonya Feldhoff who recorded a share of 11.6 (down 0.5), and FIVEaa’s David Penberthy (also a senior writer at The Australian) and Will Goodings with 11.3 (down 0.9).

Originally published as ABC Radio National’s breakfast program, hosted by Patricia Karvelas, has lost a large slice of its audience in the past year