Sep. 23, 2009 (PR Newswire) -- COLUMBIA, Md., Sept. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Arbitron Inc. (NYSE: ARB) released today its annual radio industry study, Radio Today 2009 Edition. This is the first annual report that includes Portable People Meter(TM) (PPM(TM)) data from several major markets as well as Diary data.

The Study confirmed again that more than 90 percent of all consumers aged 12 and older listen to the radio each week -- a higher penetration than television, magazines, newspapers or the Internet.

For more than a decade -- between Spring 1997 and Fall 2008 -- radio's overall cumulative audience rating has been consistently strong. Also noted in the report is that despite availability of numerous media alternatives, radio's weekly reach declined only modestly in the past several years, from 94.9 percent in Spring 2001 (when the iPod(R) was introduced) to 91 percent in Fall 2008.

Highlights of Radio Today 2009 Edition

News/Talk/Information is America's No. 1 Format. Thanks in part to an historic presidential election and important congressional campaigns, News/Talk/Information (N/T/I) ranked as the No. 1 format in Fall 2008 with a 12.6 percent share of people over the age of 12 -- far above its 10.7 percent share of Spring 2007. With 30 more AM and FM stations than in Spring 2007, and more than 1,000 HD channels and Internet streams, the N/T/I format boasts more broadcast signals by far than any other format according to the Radio Today 2009 study.

In Fall 2008, N/T/I stations were among the five leaders in the PPM Metros of Los Angeles; Chicago; San Francisco; Atlanta; Washington, DC; and Detroit. The format was No. 1 in Fall 2008 in the Diary markets of Boston, Phoenix, San Diego, St. Louis and Denver-Boulder.

Classic Hits Continues to Grow. Oldies stations continue to reposition themselves toward a younger image, making Classic Hits the fastest growing music format. Between Spring 2007 and Fall 2008, Classic Hits' share rank of the national radio audience jumped from No. 11 to sixth, reaching 3.9 percent of the U.S. population -- the most since the format has been tracked by Arbitron. Between Spring 2007 and Fall 2008, the number of AM and FM stations programming Classic Hits increased from 288 to 364. There are also now more than 200 HD and streaming Classic Hits stations.

Contemporary Christian Reaches A New Ratings High. With more than 14.5 million listeners each week (up from 14.3 million in Spring 2007), Contemporary Christian earned a 2.5 share in Fall '08, the most in the seven years the format has been studied in Radio Today. The number of AM and FM stations carrying the format rose from 724 to 781 during that time period.