During last week’s NAB Show in Las Vegas, I was honored to share the stage with Edison Research Director of Research Laura Ivey. Our approach was for Laura to share research findings and for me to offer suggestions, point out opportunities, and acknowledge obstacles.
Sharing both positive and negative experiences, wins and losses, and strategy linked to action, provided what we hope was actionable information for the attendees of the session.
Radio has much to feel good about. Time Spent Listening is showing slight growth. A third of all audio consumption is owned by Radio (OTA and Streaming). That’s greater than all other audio sources. However, that 33% was 53% in 2014. Where and how the audience listens is also changing. Listening to radio via streaming was only 5% in 2014. That’s grown to 14% in Q1 2026.
The reach of ad-supported audio sources puts radio at 57% of audio, Podcasts at 22%, YouTube music & videos at 21%, and ad-supported streaming music is at 19%.
Most Americans will listen to ad-supported audio. That number is decreasing as options become more available and exposure to new media platforms occurs with frequency. Ad-supported radio in 2015 boasted 71% of the audience. Ad-free radio (subscription) was at 29% for the same year. Fast forward to Q1 2026, and ad-supported radio is listened to by 64% of the audience, while ad-free radio (subscription) has grown to 36%.
Competition is growing. Unfortunately, there are still only 24 hours in a day, so it should be expected that there is erosion among most media. Especially legacy media, because it comes from a place of fewer options for the audience. This goes into the plus column of why it is important for radio to be multiplatform and available wherever the audience consumes media.
The continual evolution of listener expectations magnifies the importance of creating standout audio, high-level entertainment, and dependable information. The audience judges all content against everything they’ve been exposed to across all platforms. It’s generally accepted within the industry that the level of competition has never been higher, and the frequency of distraction never more significant. All of which contributes to the degradation of the listening experience.
The obstacles to improving the listening experience are clear. The most significant of which is “too many commercials.” Laura shared a visual that showed the faces of a focus group audience as they sat through a long commercial break. There is strong distaste for the length and the number of commercials in the break. Radio airs too many commercials. The quality of commercial is important, and host-read commercials matter.
It’s not just about the total time devoted to commercials in an hour that’s damaging. The number of commercial units we air is hurting radio. The conundrum is how to generate revenue beyond selling commercials. Especially as the value of AQH seems to be sliding. A market manager once told me, “If our ratings go down, we’ll need to add more commercials to hit our goal.” That’s discouraging and seems counterintuitive.
Edison Research asked a question about commercials in a very recent study: “If you had to listen to commercials and couldn’t change the station, which of the following commercial breaks would you prefer to hear on AM/FM Radio?” One commercial break an hour that lasts eight minutes; 24% prefer that option. Two commercial breaks an hour that last four minutes each; 31% prefer that option. Four commercial breaks an hour, with each break lasting two minutes; 45% prefer that option. The audience prefers more stop-sets of shorter duration.
The hesitation I have in embracing that finding is that the methodology of Nielsen favors one long stop-set versus two or four shorter stop-sets. Despite the three-minute qualifier in PPM markets and these findings, my recommendation to clients is to stop fewer times in an hour, even if it means longer stop-sets. Mainly because we’ve spent decades teaching the audience that when we stop, we STOP! Going to more frequent, shorter breaks, you will need to be clear that each break is two minutes in length, and you need to be consistent.
While radio audiences are aging, Edison Research showed that it is a myth that young people do not listen to radio. The 13-34 audience makes up 20% of all radio listening. The 35-54 audience shows up with 36% of all listening. Upper-end listening, identified at 55+, is at 46% of the radio audience. Younger listeners often listen to radio on a device versus an actual radio, and sometimes don’t realize that they are listening to the radio, but it’s presented online or on demand, versus over the air.
To that end radio should acknowledge its core audience’s age and not be homogenized to satisfy an advertising agency.
During this session, Ms. Ivey also shared the growth of podcasting as an audio delivery platform. Edison started tracking podcast listening in 2008. Podcasting was measured in percent of audience who listened to or watched a podcast in the last month. At the beginning of the study period, only 9% of the US population were identified as podcast listeners. Fast forward to Q1 2026, and consumption is at 58% of the population, or 168 million people. Some stations still refuse to participate in the platform, and if they do, they hesitate in promoting their own podcasts.
If a listener is leaving to listen to a podcast, you want it to be your podcast.
Laura Ivery also pointed to the gender balance among podcast listeners. Men 12+ who listen to podcasts make up the majority of consumption at 62% of the US Male population. Women 12+ come in at 54% of the US Female population. Podcasting not only expands the audio reach of a station, but it also increases the saleable inventory available for revenue growth. Podcasting allows radio to be On Demand as well as serving to grow and expand a station’s brand. Encoding your podcast audio for PPM to capture “the listen” … as long as it’s within 24 hours of OTA airing on the radio … can also grow your ratings.
The automobile remains the listening location where radio clearly dominates. That also is an area of erosion, albeit modest. In 2016, 84% of Americans age 18+ who have driven or ridden in a car listened the most to AM/FM Radio. In Q1 2026, that percentage dropped to 73%. By comparison, online audio has grown from 21% in 2016 to 48% in 2026 Q1. These numbers support the necessity of keeping the radio in the car. It also begs for more on-air promotion of radio’s omnipresent being across multiple platforms.
When it comes to the age of the audience listening in the car, 55% of the US population 13+ listen to AM/FM. Looking at the younger side of the spectrum; 46% of the 13-34 US population listens to AM/FM radio in a car. This information is taken directly from Edison Research SSRS Share of Ear © Q1 2026.
The research presented regarding AI-generated audio mirrors what has been seen and reported frequently when the topic of non-human talent is raised. Respondents were resistant to anything other than humans as talent, and in regard to the content they heard. The use of AI personalities was received poorly by the study participants, and it was described as lacking humanness. While AI can be of great assistance in creating and developing content, humans must remain the deliverers of such information or entertainment.
Improving the Listening Experience
- Content: Because the level of competition is high, we can never “phone it in.” The content (Entertainment and/or Information) will be judged against all other available content. Talent need to be prepared. Relating to the target audience is critical, regardless of being live and local, voice-tracked, or syndicated.
- Connectivity: Being a part of a community, a genuine connection to the target audience, and being conscious of their lifestyles, interests, habits, and consumption is an advantage that increases the opportunity to develop a connection that should last long term. A talent doesn’t have to be live and local to have such a connection, but it increases the likelihood of doing so. Syndicated programs and voice-tracked talent can match that of the local talent, but it requires a Producer or Program Director to make that happen. The extra effort is worth it.
- Commercials: Ad-supported audio is still listened to more than ad-free audio sources. That’s what keeps radio free to the public. There is much in the way of research and ratings that support airing fewer commercials. Very few appear to have the stomach for reducing their commercial load. Which begs the question of when, if ever, the value of commercial inventory will be raised. Given this reality, the production and writing of commercial messages must be of high quality.
- Multi-Platform: Radio has to be everywhere and be heard & seen everywhere. That is OTA (Over the Air), Podcasts, On Demand, Streaming, Social Media, Apps (individual stations and aggregated platforms), and On Location. I like to tout it as “Using every part of the cow.” In reality, it’s about being on the same platforms as our competitors, which levels the playing field.
- Podcasting: Unto themselves, podcasts are showing significant rapid growth among audio consumers. Podcasting allows you to build a greater brand for your station and for your talent. There is a benefit in allowing and encouraging your talent to grow their brand. Promote the biggest and best podcasts you own and/or support over the air. Use host-read ads to build podcast revenue.
- Artificial Intelligence: Edison Research shows that the audience is uncomfortable with AI. One respondent noted that they didn’t want to “listen to a robot.” As a talent, do those things that AI cannot do. Be real. Share emotion. Be observational and mention things that you’ve seen, experienced, or plan to do. Embrace real-time excitement in the real world.
The listening experience improves when we change from what was and emphasize what is in a way that commits to delivering what the audience wants to hear, versus what we want them to hear.
Special thanks to Laura Ivey and Edison Research.
