Radio_wars

Earlier this evening, Philly.com cartoonist Rob Tornoe reported on a recent trend in the RADIO WARS, writing that 97.5’s Anthony Gargano and his Morning Show are closing the gap on Angelo Cataldi and the WIP Morning Show. 97.5’s show finished the August ratings period ending on August 12 (…) with a 6.0 share in the all-important men 25-54 demo, while WIP counted a 6.8. Still a victory for Cataldi, but a much narrower margin than he’s used to.

Tornoe also wrote that, for the same ratings period, Josh Innes beat Mike Missanelli by only 0.5– 8.0 to 7.5 (share, in the same demo). That’s the closest it’s been in months.

But Tornoe merely pencil-sketched the image for you. Let’s color in those lines.

A source confirmed those numbers to me and broke them down on a weekly basis. The closer look reveals that 97.5 has gained significant momentum over the last few weeks.

Morning show

For ratings period Week 2, which I’m told ended on July 29 – the week of Cole Hamels’ no-hitter leading up to the MLB trade deadline – Gargano edged Cataldi– 6.4 to 6.3 share (all numbers are in the men 25-54 demo). That’s the first time that’s ever happened. In Week 3 – the start of Eagles training camp – Angelo won by just 0.1 points, but widened his lead back up to almost a full point in Week 4. It’s still WIP’s fight to lose, but it appears we have a legitimate contender in this early morning battle.

 

Afternoons

Innes did indeed beat Missanelli for the month… but only thanks to a monster Week 1, when Mike was on vacation. Mike missed two of the five days in Week 2 – Hamels no-hitter – and lost 7.5 to 6.6. But in Weeks 3 and 4 – Eagles training camp in full swing – Mike beat Innes 9.5 to 8.5 and 8.4 to 7.6, respectively. Keep in mind, all of this is before the addition of Spike Eskin and Hollis Thomas on Innes’ show. September’s ratings period – already well underway – will hinge on whether Innes gains or loses steam teamed up with his new partners. But, the last two weeks were a small-sample-size verification of a common concern about Innes’ audience– that he will lose some of it to Mike once real sports begin.

 

We’re heading into September facing the prospect of an absolute donnybrook in this saga. The flames can get hot, but sometimes one must stick their head inside to see the real story. MAESTRO BURNING:

https://vimeo.com/136746992