For a medium-sized market, Portland is well served in the news/talk radio sphere. With stations like 101 KXL, 1190 KEX, and AM 860 The Answer, as well as a pair of nationally syndicated programs, local listeners have no shortage of options for content.

In the winter book, the dominance of 101 KXL was on display in the market. Starting in morning drive (6a-10a), KXL’s combination of Portland’s Morning News and the first hour of Markley, Van Camp & Robbins earned a 9.1 share with Persons 35-64. That helped the station secure a second place finish. KXL performed even better with Persons 25-54, taking the top spot with an 8.2 share.

Meanwhile, 1190 KEX featured Armstrong & Getty and the first hour of The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show in the daypart. The two shows collectively produced a 1.3 share in Persons 35-64 and a 0.3 share with Persons 25-54.

Middays (10a-3p) is where KXL saw its largest success during the quarter. The final two hours of Markley, Van Camp & Robbins paired with the first three hours of The Lars Larson Show scored a first-place finish in Persons 25-54 with an 11.6 share. That figure actually rose for Persons 35-64 as the station registered a 12.4 share, good for second. 1190 KEX featured the final two hours of The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show, and the full three hours of The Glenn Beck Program. The two shows were far back with a 0.3 share with Persons 35-64 and a 0.2 share with Persons 25-54.

In afternoons (3p-7p), KXL featured the final hour of Larson’s program, alongside Portland’s Afternoon News. Among Persons 35-64, the timeslot registered a 4.1 share to rank 8th. With Persons 25-54, it amassed a 3.2 share. For KEX, the station aired The Jesse Kelly Show and the first hour of The Michael Berry Show during the daypart. They received an 0.4 share (Persons 35-64) and 0.2 share (Persons 25-54).

For weekday prime (M-F, 6a-7p) the Alpha Media-owned 101 KXL finished in both Persons 35-64 and Persons 25-54. They popped an 8.7 share and 7.8 share, respectively. Meanwhile, 1190 KEX had an 0.7 share (Persons 35-64) and 0.2 share (Persons 25-54) during the quarter.

Closing out with a look at the full week (M-Su, 6a-12a), KXL ranked second with Persons 35-64 with a 6.7 share. The station dropped to third with Persons 25-54 with a 6.0 share. KEX on the other hand saw a 0.6 share with Persons 35-64, and 0.2 share with Persons 25-54.

Ratings data for the Salem Media Group-owned AM 860 The Answer was unavailable.

Ratings reports and analysis are written by BNM and sponsored by Crowd React Media, a division of Harker Bos Group. Learn more about the different ways media research can benefit your station and cut through the noise by clicking here.

AI continues to be a hot-button topic in radio circles. Many are toying with the technology. And while he says his company will utilize AI in some areas, Dave Ramsey made a promise to listeners they won’t hear it used to create content.

“AI is a thing we’re spending a lot of time considering around Ramsey for a couple of reasons. One is, it’s a way to get work done,” Ramsey said during his EntreLeadership podcast.

“It is a genie in the bottle. It is a Pandora’s box that when it gets opened,” Dave Ramsey continued. “But it also — with principles operated by principled people — is a tremendous opportunity. It’s simply technology. The technology is amoral. It doesn’t have morals. It’s not good or it’s not bad. If it touches a crook’s hand, crooks will find a way to use it to steal, and good people will find a way to use it to create more good things. So we’re using principles where you’re not going to hear an AI-generated voice out of Ramsey. We’ve made that decision.”

Ramsey added that AI has changed certain aspects of the business at Ramsey Solutions and The Ramsey Network. While discussing the technology, he noted that some of the publications released by the company have been copied by people utilizing the technology to re-sell exact replicas of the content produced by Ramsey.

“When you are in the business we’re in of content production where everyone can steal everything you do … There’s four workbooks on Amazon right now that AI produced, stole, and are in complete violation of our copyright. We’ve got our publishers pulling them down right now,” said Ramsey. “You can get a workbook for the Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, complete theft, complete piracy, sold on Amazo … So AI piracy is real.”

Audacy underwent a round of layoffs on Wednesday that eliminated the jobs of nearly 100 employees, and the staff at WBBM in Chicago and 1080 WTIC in Hartford were majorly affected.

In Chicago, afternoon news anchor Keith Johnson has exited. Johnson anchored alongside Lisa Fielding from 2-7 PM on the venerable news outlet.

Also, five of the eight digital news employees at WBBM saw their positions eliminated. AnnMarie Welser — a Social Media and Community Editor at the all-news station — confirmed she was one of the casualties.

In Hartford, 1080 WTIC news anchors Kevin Gorden and Greg Little departed the station, according to a report from The Laurel.

Additionally, KDKA saw a lineup shuffle amid the layoffs, as afternoon host Rick Dayton departed the station yesterday.

Audacy claimed the layoffs would affect less than 2% of its overall workplace. The company — which is in the process of emerging from a pre-packaged bankruptcy filing earlier this year — said the move was a disappointing but necessary one.

“Audacy is performing well against our 2024 business plan, and we are on track to emerge as a stronger and healthier company, well positioned for a bright future as a differentiated, scaled industry leader with the industry’s strongest balance sheet,” a company spokesperson said.

“As we continue to make large investments and drive enhancements across our business, we are simultaneously implementing some difficult but necessary decisions that will impact less than 2% of our workforce to best position our company for long-term growth.”