In its first overarching radio report about the state of radio since acquiring Arbitron, Nielsen finds that the majority of radio use comes from the employed audience, away from home.
Over two-thirds of the weekly audience (62%) works full-time, meaning they have money to spend and are reached just before they decide to shop, according to Nielsen in “Audio Today 2014.”
Breaking down the findings by demographics, 53% of Millennials (18–34) listeners work full-time; 65 million use radio each week. Seventy-four percent of Generation X (age 35 to 49) listeners work full-time; 57 million use radio each week. And finally, 50% percent of Boomer (50–64) listeners work full-time; 56 million use radio each week.
Looking at ethnic listening, nearly 92% of all African-Americans age 12 and older use radio every week, according to Nielsen. Urban AC is the top format and 47% of these listeners work full-time. More than 94% of all Hispanics age 12 and up use radio every week. Mexican regional is the top format and 51% of these listeners work full-time.
Overall, country was the top format in 2013, followed by news/talk, pop CHR, AC and classic hits to round out the top five, according to the audience research firm.
