Newstalk ZB remains New Zealand’s top commercial radio station, while The Breeze maintains its position as the highest-rating music station, according to latest audience ratings released today. 

The two big rival commercial companies - NZME and MediaWorks - will be celebrating specific successes in the survey, which shows overall audiences have remained relatively steady - about 3.4 million people listen to radio each week. 

For NZME, Newstalk ZB remains a powerhouse and overall number one station with a 14 share - 4.7 share points ahead of The Breeze in number 2 spot. ZB also scored a 14 share in the previous survey. 

Aside from The Breeze’s top music position, MediaWorks will be pleased with the performance of The Rock, Magic, and Mai which have all had lifts in national share. 

NZME music stations The Hits, ZM, and Hauraki also performed well on a national share basis, with ZM’s cumulative audience now bigger than arch-rival The Edge for the first time. 

Hosking remains the country’s top breakfast show host, with a national share of 19.6. While that’s down slightly, it’s still 11.5 points ahead of The Rock breakfast with The Breeze in third spot. 

ZM breakfast hosts, from left, Hayley Sproull, Carl Fletcher and Vaughan Smith. 

The Breeze's Auckland breakfast hosts Robert Rakete and Jeanette Thomas. 

While RNZ’s results are not released for another week - it is not a commercial radio station - it has fallen behind ZB when comparing cumulative audiences from most recent surveys. 

A leading radio industry boss is using the results to make a strong pitch for television advertisers. 

“While we see some well-documented challenges across the New Zealand media landscape, commercial radio holds firm,” said Radio Broadcasters Association chief executive Alistair Jamison. 

“The last four surveys have shown weekly listening of around 3.4 million. At a time where I know that advertisers are ‘searching’ for answers to declining TV audiences, the answer is in audio.” 

Radio Broadcasters Association chief executive Al Jamison. Photo / Michael Craig 

And in press-release statements, both major companies made a strong pitch about the strength of radio. 

MediaWorks chief executive Wendy Palmer said: “No other channel is reaching mass audiences as quickly and cost-effectively as we consistently do with audio. It’s great news for today’s budget-conscious marketers who can invest with confidence, knowing their message will reach the right people.” 

NZME chief executive Michael Boggs said: “Our audience numbers show that we continue to connect with listeners across the commercial audio landscape. As an industry, we’ve diversified our content offering across radio brands, invested in excellent on-air talent, and we continue to grow our digital audio and podcast offering to ensure there’s something for everyone.” 

NZ top 5 stations (by share): Newstalk ZB 14; The Breeze 9.3; The Rock 8.4; Magic 6.9; More FM 6.6 

Auckland top 5 stations (by share): Newstalk ZB 15.6; The Breeze 9.9; Mai 8.8; ZM 6; Coast 5.7 

Wellington top 5 stations (by share): Newstalk ZB 16.4; The Breeze 12.5; The Rock 7.5; Hauraki 6.7; ZM and Magic 6.3 

Christchurch top 5 stations (by share): Newstalk ZB 16.8; The Breeze 10.5; Magic 9.6; More 9.2; The Rock 7.8 

Dunedin top 5 stations (by share): Newstalk ZB 13.7; The Hits 9.6; Edge 8.2; The Sound 8.1; Magic 7.9 

Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.