Mary Beth Garber, executive vice president of radio analysis and insights for Katz Radio Group, is disputing the methodology behind a study recently released by The Media Audit, which claims that Hispanic listeners favor online radio over traditional broadcast radio.
On Wednesday, Garber reacted to the study by writing an email she headlined “Why The Media Audit Should Be Ashamed of Itself.” In it she outlined her reasons for questioning TMA’s findings in “Internet Radio Listening Exponentially Higher among Hispanics in Nation’s Top Markets.”
Garber wrote: “Here’s why those comparisons should be disregarded and TMA should be ashamed of itself for misrepresenting data …”
Garber says the questionnaire on which the study is based utilizes mixed methodology, which skews the results in favor of Internet radio. Specifically, she notes that questions for Internet radio use aided recall (specifically naming Pandora, iHeartRadio, etc. in a list of websites that also included Google and Facebook), while terrestrial broadcast stations are treated as “fill-in-the-blank” options — unaided recall. Respondents were also asked to provide call letters, AM/FM designation and dial position for the traditional broadcast stations.
She also says that TMA’s ratings include Pandora’s premium subscribers (about 4% of listeners), who pay specifically to avoid exposure to ads, and therefore should not be included in the results.
The Media Audit could not be reached for comment.
