A U.S. House Committee puts PPM and Arbitron on the Hot Seat

Has PPM affected urban radio ratings and the jobs of former radio personalities like Toshamakia?

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform (who even knew there was such a committee) is calling in Arbitron as a chief witness as it seeks to examine the decline in ratings being experienced by minority radio stations. The hearing will be held Wednesday 12/2/09. Arbitron immediately welcomed the opportunity to testify.

The committee is under the gavel of Edolphus Towns (D-NY), who said, “With an unprecedented decline in ratings among popular minority television and radio stations, we must explore the possibility of methodological flaws in the implementation of the PPM. As it stands now, the current system jeopardizes the future of minority broadcasting.”

Towns added, “I remain deeply concerned that increased use of the PPM may unfairly threaten the financial viability of minority targeted radio stations whose advertising revenues depend on the size of their rated audience. In addition, there is a serious risk that certain groups of minority listeners will continue to be undercounted, imperiling minority audience radio stations and decreasing the diversity of opinions in radio broadcasting.” Read more

Source: Radio/TV Business Report