ABC Radio’s end-of-year ratings dive in Sydney, Melbourne
The ABC’s flagship brands in Sydney and Melbourne register falls in the final ratings survey of the year.
The ABC’s flagship metropolitan radio brands in Sydney and Melbourne have registered dramatic falls in the final ratings survey of the year, with every single timeslot across the two stations shedding listeners since late September.
ABC Radio Melbourne’s highest profile presenter, morning show host Virginia Trioli, experienced one of the sharpest dips, dropping 2.3 percentage points to finish 2022 with a 7.4 per cent audience share — her worst ratings result of the eight surveys conducted this year.
It is also her lowest recorded audience share since she began hosting the ABC Melbourne morning show in October 2019.
Trioli’s slump comes just days after she was snubbed by newly re-elected Victorian Premier, who chose to give his first post-election interview on the national broadcaster to her ABC Radio Melbourne drive time colleague Raf Epstein.
ABC Melbourne’s afternoon show, hosted by Jacinta Parsons, also fell by 2.3 percentage points, from 6.7 to a 4.4 per cent audience share; Epstein’s drive program slipped by 0.7, to a 6.1 per cent share; while the breakfast show, fronted by comedian Sammy J, dropped 0.6 percentage points to 8.0.
ABC Radio Sydney fared just as poorly as its southern sister station, falling from fourth to sixth in terms of its overall audience share.
Its beleaguered breakfast show, helmed by James Valentine, fell 0.4 percentage points to an 8.4 share.
Valentine has this year been unable to retain the strong following enjoyed by his predecessors, Wendy Harmer and Robbie Buck, who left the Sydney breakfast timeslot in January.
In the final survey of 2021, Harmer and Buck recorded an audience share of 13.2.
ABC Sydney’s Drive program, hosted by Richard Glover, has fallen from second to fifth in the timeslot, after a 2.5 point drop from 9.3 to 6.8.
Elsewhere in the Sydney market, 2GB’s Ben Fordham has reclaimed the number one spot at breakfast from KIIS1065 rivals, Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson.
Fordham finished the year with a 15.7 per cent audience share in the prestigious timeslot, with Sandilands and Henderson on 14.8.
Ray Hadley, 2GB’s morning show anchor, increased his share by 2.6 percentage points, from 13.3 to 15.9, to claim his 146th consecutive survey win with the station.
Sydney’s smoothfm 95.3 is the city’s top-rating station between midday and 4pm.
Melbourne’s 3AW had a strong showing in the year’s final survey, which was conducted by measurement provider GfK from September 25 to December 3.
In the breakfast timeslot, the dominant pairing of Ross Stevenson and Russel Howcroft increased 3AW’s audience share by 2.3 points, to 22.8, while the station’s morning show, hosted by Neil Mitchell, registered a 0.3 percentage point bump to 16.9, to retain top spot.
In Brisbane, B105’s breakfast program, led by Abby Coleman, Matt Acton and Stav Davidson, remained the most popular program, with an audience share of 13.7 (down 0.2).
NOVA106.9’s breakfast team of Ash Bradnam, Susie O’Neill and David Lutteral is a close second on 13.1 (up 0.1).
4BC’s breakfast trio of Laurel Edwards, Gary Clare and Mark Hine, who shifted from 4KQ to 4BC in July, slipped from fourth to sixth in the breakfast timeslot (down 1.9 points, from 10.8 to 8.9).
In Adelaide, FIVEaa’s breakfast show, led by David Penberthy (also a senior writer on the Australian) and Will Goodings, remained in top spot, recording an audience share of 16.5, up 1.3 percentage points.
ABC Adelaide’s breakfast program, hosted by Nikolai Beilharz and Stacey Lee, rose 0.8 points to 13.6, to maintain second place in the timeslot.
In Perth, NOVA93.7’s breakfast show, with Natalie Locke, Nathan Morris and Shaun McManus at the helm, and finished the year with an audience share of 20.8, up 0.3.
At Nine-owned 6PR, the mornings program hosted by the now departed Liam Bartlett for most of the final ratings period, recorded an audience share of 8.2, down 1.2.
Bartlett was replaced by veteran journalist Gary Adshead a few weeks ago.
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