Spanish broadcaster charges racism in Arbitron numbers

Plus other demo ratings news of note

Spanish-language broadcaster WLEY-FM is charging that the station’s numbers -as well as those of other Hispanic broadcasters – are down become Arbitron did not send out enough diaries to Spanish-speaking households in the Chicago area.

“I question the statistical reliability of this survey,” he said. “They did not have a sufficient number of diaries to represent the Hispanic marketplace.” according to Jeff Shrinsky, who is vice president and general manager of WLEY, speaking to the Chicago Tribune.

Arbitron denied the charges, noting that while the diaries represented only 12 percent of the Chicago’s population, the results were weighted to the Hispanic population, which is 17.7 percent.

And things will get more controversial when Arbitron’s new Portable People Meter -an electronic device to accurately measure ratings meant to replace diaries – will roll out next year in Chicago. The PPMs are already being used in Philadelphia and Houston.

Meanwhile, WTMX’s Eric & Kathy continue to dominate with young listeners, finishing first among women 18-34 (they gained national publicity for the Love At First Sight stunt, which was featured on 20/20), while WLUP’s Jonathan Brandmeier and WCKG’s Steve Dahl continue to do what they do best – finishing number one in the key male 25-54 demos in the morning and afternoons, respectively.

WDRV ranked first among rock stations in the 25-54 demo and among male demos, and Mike North’s morning show on WSCR-AM also did quite well, thanks to his on-air argument with White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen.

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