Esiason & Carton Boost WFAN Morning Ratings

WFAN-AM's morning show featuring Craig Carton and Boomer Esiason earned "solid" ratings in its first full ratings book from September 20-December 12 among men 25-54, the station's primary target demo, according to Neil Best of NEWSDAY. In Arbitron's fall survey, WFAN finished sixth in that demo with an average of 3.9% of the radio audience, the station's "best morning drive finish" since spring '04. ESPN Radio 1050-N.Y.'s "Mike & Mike" show ranked 15th with a 2.5 share. WFAN's "Mike & the Mad Dog" ranked first among  men 25-54 during the afternoon drive with a 6.9 share, and WFAN ranked second overall behind Spanish-language WSKQ-FM (NEWSDAY, 1/9).

MITCHELL COVERAGE: During former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell's December 13 press conference at which he unveiled his report on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball, WFAN had an Average Quarter-Hour audience of 90,200 listeners among men 25-54 for 2:00-3:00pm ET, compared to an average of 27,600 for the same hour in the preceding 12 Thursdays. WFAN also pulled an audience of 56,600 listeners in men 25-54 for the hour before the press conference, and 66,000 in the demo for the hour after the presser. ESPN's 1050 had a peak audience of 43,100 in that demo during the press conference, compared to 27,600 for that hour of the preceding six Thursdays. During the hour before the press conference, ESPN 1050 drew 28,800 listeners in the demo, and the station saw that number climb to 29,200 after the presser (RADIOINK.com, 1/8).