Spring Book Planned for Three Katrina Markets

Arbitron will only publish a spring book for areas hit by Katrina if its survey is up to standards, the company says. But the good news this week for radio managers along the Gulf Coast is that Arbitron plans to be back, surveying New Orleans, Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula, Miss. and Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas this spring.
Among the reasons cited by the company: “New ratings will signal that these markets are resuming normal business practice.” It also said that ratings information in the area is now very stale.
The company cancelled three books – summer, fall and winter – for New Orleans, and skipped the fall book for Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula and Beaumont-Port Arthur.
Company exec Carol Hanley stated, “In making our decision about whether to conduct a survey following a natural disaster, we take into consideration the physical and economic impact of the disaster as well as our ability to reach respondents in the market.”