2003 - BAD FOR SOME, BUENA FOR OTHERS
When
KHKS (Kiss FM) debuted in November 1992 - and then zoomed into the top 5 within
its first year - the station quickly earned a reputation as one of the nation's
top 40 standard-bearers and helped resurrect a format which had fallen into
disarray during the late eighties and early nineties. Kiss FM rode its
success to levels unseen by a top 40 station in DFW in decades. A dozen #1
rankings put KHKS into exclusive territory. The pressure to remain at the
top, an increasingly fragmented market, and a top 40 format that was falling
into doldrums similar to those of the late eighties meant an end to Kiss FM's
ten year streak in the top 10.
Part
of the market's increased fragmentation was evidenced by the increasing presence
of Spanish language stations in DFW radio. In 2000, KLNO "Estereo
Latino" became the first such station to crack the top 10. Its
success led to the launch of a sister station at 107.9. With the familiar
old KESS call letters, "La Que Buena" was launched to complement
the format of sister station KLNO. While the arrival of the new KESS-FM
did force its own sister station down in the ratings, the net
result was a positive, as the combined numbers for KLNO and KESS were far
greater than they had been for KLNO alone and gave DFW not one, but two Spanish
language stations in the top 10.
To
the DFW radio history purist, 2003 was a very historic year, as the market's
oldest signal made its debut in the Dallas/Fort Worth top ten. The
1310 frequency traces its roots to 1920 as WRR. That station was a fixture
in Dallas for over fifty years, but WRR was never able to crack the top ten by
the Arbitron combined the Dallas and Fort Worth markets in 1973. Fast
forward to 2003: even though KTCK (The Ticket) was already in its
tenth year of a sports-talk format and had posted decent numbers all along, the
Winter survey was the first-ever appearance in the top ten for not only KTCK,
but also the oldest frequency in the state.
| 12+ Ratings for Winter 2003 | ||||
| Call Letters | Frequency | Format | Fa 2002 | Wi 2003 |
| KKDA-FM | 104.5 | Urban | 6.8 | 6.3 |
| KPLX | 99.5 | Country | 6.1 | 5.5 |
| KLNO | 94.1 | Regional Mexican | 5.1 | 5.2 |
| WBAP | 820 | News/Talk | 4.3 | 4.4 |
| KSCS | 96.3 | Country | 3.7 | 4.3 |
| KLUV | 98.7 | Oldies | 4.3 | 4.0 |
| KBFB | 97.9 | Urban | 3.2 | 3.9 |
| KLTY | 94.9 | Christian AC | 3.1 | 3.7 |
| KHKS | 106.1 | CHR | 3.6 | 3.5 |
| KTCK | 1310 | Sports | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| 12+ Ratings for Spring 2003 | ||||
| Call Letters | Frequency | Format | Wi 2003 | Sp 2003 |
| KKDA-FM | 104.5 | Urban | 6.3 | 7.2 |
| KPLX | 99.5 | Country | 5.5 | 5.2 |
| WBAP | 820 | News/Talk | 4.4 | 4.6 |
| KLNO | 94.1 | Regional Mexican | 5.2 | 4.4 |
| KLUV | 98.7 | Oldies | 4.0 | 3.9 |
| KSCS | 96.3 | Country | 4.3 | 3.8 |
| KBFB | 97.9 | Urban | 3.9 | 3.6 |
| KLTY | 94.9 | Christian AC | 3.7 | 3.5 |
| KDGE | 102.1 | Alternative | 3.2 | 3.4 |
| 12+ Ratings for Summer 2003 | ||||
| Call Letters | Frequency | Format | Sp 2003 | Su 2003 |
| KKDA-FM | 104.5 | Urban | 7.2 | 6.2 |
| KPLX | 99.5 | Country | 5.2 | 4.9 |
| KBFB | 97.9 | Urban | 3.6 | 4.6 |
| KLUV | 98.7 | Oldies | 3.9 | 4.4 |
| KSCS | 96.3 | Country | 3.8 | 4.1 |
| WBAP | 820 | News/Talk | 4.6 | 4.1 |
| KLNO | 94.1 | Regional Mexican | 4.4 | 3.7 |
| KHKS | 106.1 | CHR | 3.2 | 3.6 |
| KOAI | 107.5 | Smooth Jazz | 3.3 | 3.5 |
| KLTY | 94.9 | Christian AC | 3.5 | 3.2 |
| KVIL | 103.7 | Adult Contemporary | 2.8 | 3.2 |
| 12+ Ratings for Fall 2003 | ||||
| Call Letters | Frequency | Format | Sp 2003 | Su 2003 |
| KKDA-FM | 104.5 | Urban | 6.2 | 6.3 |
| KPLX | 99.5 | Country | 4.9 | 5.5 |
| KLTY | 94.9 | Christian AC | 3.2 | 4.8 |
| WBAP | 820 | News/Talk | 4.1 | 4.5 |
| KBFB | 97.9 | Urban | 4.6 | 4.4 |
| KSCS | 96.3 | Country | 4.1 | 4.1 |
| KLUV | 98.7 | Oldies | 4.4 | 4.0 |
| KESS-A/F | 1270/107.9 | Regional Mexican | 2.8 | 3.9 |
| KLNO | 94.1 | Regional Mexican | 3.7 | 3.9 |
| KVIL | 103.7 | Adult Contemporary | 3.2 | 3.6 |
©2004 Arbitron Inc.