2GB and 3AW delivering ‘absolutely extraordinary’ numbers, but aiming higher
After the first radio survey of 2021, Mumbrella’s Brittney Rigby asks Nine Radio’s Greg Byrnes whether Ben Fordham has hit his stride, what an AM decline in Melbourne means for Russel Howcroft and Ross Stevenson, and whether their extraordinarily high shares can realistically get any better from here.
Yesterday, Nine Radio’s 2GB in Sydney and 3AW in Melbourne recorded their best first survey results in more than a decade. 3AW slid 3.3 percentage points overall but still remains well ahead of the pack, more than five points ahead of its closest competitor, Gold 104.3. And 2GB climbed 0.6 points for a 14.4% share, still more than two points above its stiffest competition at the ABC.
Head of content Greg Byrnes says the figures are “impressive”, and he chalks them up to the impact of the pandemic on listener habits. During COVID-19, people turned to talk radio, so “we had people sampling us for the first time, and they liked what they heard and they’ve stuck around”.
Byrnes
