Cumulus/Westwood Studies: Audio Listeners are a Rich Source of In-market Financial Consumers
Seven consumer studies commissioned by the Cumulus Media | Westwood One Audio Active Group® over an eight-year period find audio listeners are a rich source of in-market financial consumers and drive significant top and bottom funnel impact. The key findings from the studies are outlined on this week’s blog.
Key takeaways:
• Compared to TV viewers, audio listeners are far more likely own investment assets, to be in the market for financial services, and be interested in the category.
• Despite massive TV spending by financial service marketers, TV viewers exhibit low brand equity for financial service brands and weak interest in the category due to the older skew of TV audiences.
• MRI-Simmons: Heavy podcast and AM/FM radio listeners are the ideal audiences for financial brands as they are more likely to be premium clients willing to pay for financial services.
• Case study #1: MESH Experience: Among consumers with $500K+ of investable assets, heavy AM/FM radio listeners are three times more likely than heavy TV viewers to be in the market for a new or additional financial services company.
• Case study #2: AM/FM radio drives strong growth in top funnel measures such as awareness, favorability, and consideration.
• Case study #3: A MARU/Matchbox study of consumers with $1M+ of investable assets found over a six-month period, an AM/FM radio campaign generated double-digit lifts in most measures of brand equity.
• Case study #4: Heavy AM/FM radio listeners are more likely to be active investors and more engaged with the financial category versus heavy TV viewers.
• Case study #5: Heavy AM/FM radio listeners are +44% more likely to be financial ‘thrivers,’ those who like taking investing risks and agree that investing is important.
• Case study #6: Compared to TV viewers, audio listeners are much more likely to have investments across a broad array of assets classes and more likely to invest in major financial brands.
• Case study #7: Harris Poll Brand Tracker: A Westwood One NFL AM/FM radio campaign generates significant brand equity impact far stronger than among TV viewers.
Check out today’s blog post.
View a 15-minute video of the key findings here.
Earlier this week, Michael Harrison published his top 10 list of suggestions for being a successful talker. Item number three really caught my eye:
on consumer lifestyles, purchasing behavior and cross-platform media usage while TOMA.Solutions adds a powerful layer of competitive insight by measuring “Top-of-Mind Awareness,” revealing which local brands own the first-to-mind position in their categories. Cumulus president of operations Dave Milner says, “Today’s advertisers want more than audience delivery. They want insight, clarity, and a stronger connection between marketing decisions and business results. By integrating specialized resources like The Media Audit and TOMA.Solutions into our broader research suite, our teams in these markets provide an even deeper level of local intelligence, helping our clients build more precise and effective campaigns.”
TALKERS magazine associate publisher) Matthew B. Harrison, a work designed for today’s news/talk media environment where audio, video, screenshots, and quotes are not just supporting elements – but serve as the actual content itself. This technique has become particularly prevalent on YouTube and even cable news/talk TV but increasingly appears in audio form as what used to be called “actualities” – sound from another source.
book explains the legal concept of fair use not as a permission structure, but as a legal defense raised after copying has already occurred – an uncomfortable but essential distinction that underpins the entire analysis.
contributing their time, expertise, and resources. Honorees are true champions of service, demonstrating an unwavering commitment to fostering growth and progress within the industry.” McVay was presented with the award by Erica Farber on April 20, at the MIW Lipstick & Lobster Dinner at Maggiano’s. MIW board president Sheila Kirby states, “Mike McVay has been a consistent and powerful advocate for both the radio industry and the advancement of women within it. His willingness to share his time, expertise, and influence has made a lasting impact on MIW and the broader community we serve. Mike doesn’t just support the mission, he actively helps move it forward, and that kind of leadership is exactly what the Erica Farber Impact Award represents.”
offers these tips: 1) Be exact: The more specific the language used, the more accurate the response; State a desired outcome like “grow awareness”, “increase sales”, or “expand my customer base”; 2) Use reputable sources within search queries to get accurate information; 3) Take careful note of sourcing and dates: Don’t take data at face value without checking it; 4) Understand that AI platforms are different: Results will vary depending on the platform; and 5) Expect responses will change: Lots of factors impact the AI answers so read them carefully. 
Time Spent Listening to podcasts has now surpassed TSL with spoken word radio. And both are fraught.
audio in the car among Americans 13+. Edison adds, “As of Q1 2026, 55% of in-car audio time is spent listening to AM/FM radio. The next closest platform in the car is streaming audio. Time with streaming audio has grown over the 12-year history of Share of Ear but remains a distant competitor to AM/FM radio among the total population ages 13+, with 16% of in-car audio time going to streaming platforms… Among Americans 13-34, 46% of their in-car audio time is spent listening to AM/FM radio and 30% with streaming audio sources.”
Gamble. Beasley says in his new role, he’ll oversee all human resources and benefits functions across Beasley Media Group. His responsibilities include employee relations, benefits administration, compliance, and the development of programs designed to support the well-being and professional growth of employees across the organization. He will also oversee the company’s business insurance programs.
pending regulatory approval by the FCC and is expected to close in summer of this year. Connoisseur CEO Jeff Warshaw states, “We are over the moon to be able to add these phenomenal properties and team to our company. This marriage will allow us to even better serve the community and our clients.” NRG Media CEO Mary Quass adds, “The Lincoln stations have been a very important part of our story, and we are pleased to pass them to Jeff and his team. Jeff is a broadcaster who shares our commitment to great local service, quality programming, and deep community connections!” At the same time, Connoisseur is entering into a deal with MSC Radio Group to sell its Topeka cluster that includes news/talk WIBW-AM and three music brands. About this sale, Jeff Warshaw says, “We’re incredibly proud of the impact these stations have had in Topeka and the connections they’ve built with listeners. As we continue to refine our portfolio, this agreement allows us to focus our resources on key growth markets while ensuring these stations are well-positioned for the future with KNZA. We’re confident they will continue their legacy of serving the community with a strong emphasis on local engagement, news, and partnerships.”
The recent shutdown of CBS News Radio isn’t just another media headline – it’s a wake-up call. A clear example of what happens when decisions about our information, our communities, and our voices are made in corporate boardrooms disconnected from real life.
Management’s Michael Del Nin in 2022 and began working together “to try to acquiring Cox Radio, with Del Nin agreeing that Warshaw would manage the business as CEO upon successful acquisition.” While both parties were doing due diligence on the CMG deal, Warshaw learned that an Audacy majority stake holder was willing to sell its stake in the company. Warshaw says he steered SFM and Del Nin to the deal that made SFM a majority stake holder of the new Audacy in early 2024. Warshaw alleges he was promised he’d be the next CEO of Audacy or that he would get 5% of SFM’s profits from the Audacy acquisition. Later, SFM filed a motion to strike arguing that talks between Del Nin and Warshaw did not rise to the level of an employment offer. In his recent filing with the court, Warshaw says SFM reads “the Complaint in the light least favorable to Plaintiff. And they introduce new facts and make factual arguments that must be left for resolution by a jury at trial. Even so, based on the Complaint’s detailed allegations, Defendants’ arguments fall apart. Defendants ask the Court to believe that Jeffrey Warshaw, a veteran executive and dealmaker in radio, attempted to ‘cozy up’ to Defendants, newcomers to radio. But why did they seek an introduction to Warshaw in the first place? Why did they need Warshaw to source the Audacy transaction, and quickly ask him to introduce them to Audacy’s controlling debtholder? Why did Michael Del Nin call Warshaw 107 times between October 2023 and October 2024? On breach of contract, Defendants argue that the Complaint does not plead definite and certain terms of the contract between Warshaw and SFM. That ignores the definiteness of the contract terms alleged, as well as controlling precedent holding that an oral agreement is enforceable so long as missing terms can be ascertained by fair implication or industry custom. Defendants also downplay the value of Warshaw’s sourcing of the Audacy deal and his introduction of Defendants to the firm holding a controlling interest in Audacy debt.”
AI is now embedded in the modern newsroom. Not as a headline, not as a novelty, but as infrastructure. It drafts outlines, summarizes complex reporting, surfaces background details, and accelerates prep for live conversations. For media creators operating under relentless deadlines, that efficiency is not theoretical. It is practical and daily.
dominant spoken-word audio listening platform, but it was fully sixty-five percentage points higher than podcasts, which accounted for 10% of listening time back then. Quarter by quarter and year over year, time spent using AM/FM radio to listen to spoken-word audio has declined significantly and shifted to time spent with podcasts. As of Q4 2025, 40% of time spent listening to spoken-word is now spent with podcasts and 39% of time is spent with AM/FM radio. Not only does radio not beat podcasts by a significant margin, it now trails the on-demand platform for spoken-word audio listening.”
help to the entire team throughout the past year, stepping in without hesitation and taking on added responsibility. His work ethic, commitment to the station, and focus on fostering a collaborative environment have not gone unnoticed, making him the ideal candidate for this elevated role.” LaCroix, who’s been with the station since 2017 and has served as executive producer of the morning show since 2021, says, “I’m delighted to accept this role and grateful for the opportunity. I’m excited to continue working with this team and to help drive the continued growth and success of ‘The Fan.’”
Hubbard says the collaboration brings together Federal News Network’s trusted reporting with Leadership Connect’s proprietary data and analysis to deliver deeper context and insight across the federal marketplace. Federal News Network publisher Jeffrey Wolinsky states, “Our mission has always been to support federal executives with the insights they need to lead effectively. This partnership with Leadership Connect allows us to enrich our reporting with deeper data, ensuring our audience receives more impactful content than ever before. We are thrilled to integrate these resources to better serve the federal community.”
deal to provide a one-minute news update hosted by one of the network’s anchors to over 15,000 taxis across the country, including in New York City. In a January 21 letter to Mamdani and Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Midori Valdivia, Hoylman-Sigal stated the cabs should not carry Newsmax because of its “politically charged content.” The letter went further, stating Newsmax “is not a credible news source for New Yorkers. I urge you to summarily suspend the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission’s partnership with Curb… and demand that Curb cease its collaboration with Newsmax as a condition of licensure given the platform’s history of misinformation and disingenuous reporting.” Newsmax says, “This is a pure act of censorship targeting a news organization reaching over 50 million Americans regularly. Newsmax plays it straight and that drives the far left crazy.” 
Linear broadcast media have never been more challenged. Internet video now commands far more viewing time than over-the-air TV. And their own networks are hijacking viewers! Your local NBC station tells you to watch Peacock. ABC points you to Disney+. CBS pushes Paramount+. Affiliates are effectively forced to promote their own competition.
Giordano is a political commentator, social generalist and seasoned expert on education. He is a former Pennsylvania-based schoolteacher whose keen insights, innovative ideas, and communication skills were discovered by talk radio in Philadelphia in 1987 when, after serving as a dependable “go-to” source on education, he became a fulltime host on WWDB-FM. In 2000, he moved over to powerhouse WPHT 1210 am in Philly where he has been broadcasting ever since. In addition to his enduring radio presence, Giordano hosts several podcasts including the groundbreaking “Old School, New School, Next School” which takes a critical-but-constructive view of America’s education crisis and is must-listening for parents who care about their kids and the future of America. Get ready for a no-holds-barred view of such hot topics as school choice, the tyranny of social media, the distraction of smart phones, short term attention spans, bullying, the threat of guns and violence, responsible parenting, media complacency, and a whole lot more. 
For years, “protect your name and likeness” sounded like lawyer advice in search of a problem. Abstract. Defensive. Easy to ignore. That worked when misuse required effort, intent, and a human decision-maker willing to cross a line.
competition local radio stations today face for audiences and vital advertising revenues from online and satellite content providers and digital ad platforms not subject to any comparable restrictions on their scale and scope; the dire negative effects that consumer and advertiser substitution of competing digital audio content and advertising for traditional radio has had on the listenership and advertising revenues garnered by local radio stations, including in mid-sized and small markets; and how the retention of asymmetric ownership restrictions has prevented radio broadcasters from gaining local scale to take advantage of important economic efficiencies, obtain investment capital, and better compete for audiences and advertising revenues, and thus enhance – or even maintain – their provision of news, emergency information, and valued entertainment and sports programming in local communities across the country at no cost to the public.” Responding to testimony from musicFirst Coalition and the Future of Music Coalition – referred to as the Coalitions – NAB writes, “First, the fact that the Coalitions continue to hold themselves out as protectors of small, local independent broadcasters not just borders on the absurd but crosses over into full-blown absurdity. The Coalitions represent the interests of the music industry, which is dominated by three consolidated international record labels. Compared to even the largest radio station groups, the giant record labels are the 800-pound gorillas of the music world. Those three labels earn billions more in revenue than the approximately 11,000 full-power commercial AM/FM stations combined. As NAB earlier reported, the three major music companies jointly generated about $2.9 million per hour in 2023. In remarkable contrast, in 2023 and 2024 the vast majority of radio stations garnered less – and often much less – than $2.9 million per year in advertising revenues. Needless to say, the Coalitions have never explained how local radio stations earning such low levels of revenue (and even lower, if any, profits) are supposed to keep talented employees and provide high quality programming, including popular music, sports, and informational programming, such as weather updates and emergency information, OTA and free to the public without achieving increased local scale, greater economic efficiencies, and more robust ad revenues. 
discoverability capabilities to small and mid-sized businesses that are being excluded from emerging search and discovery channels due to cost, complexity, and technical barriers.” Audacy SVP of digital Jenny Sutton says, “Local advertisers can be overwhelmed by the pace of change in digital marketing and discovery. By partnering with Next Net, we’re giving our clients a future-ready solution that integrates AI discoverability directly into the media and marketing strategies they already know and trust, without requiring technical resources or additional burden on the business owner.”
With the conclusion of 2025 at hand, we are entering the second half of the third decade of the 21st century. It will be a remarkably transitional period for the talk radio industry and its closely associated fields in talk media, as well as media-in-general.
addition to their existing audio distribution. When this video feature launches, creators will be able to upload their podcast episodes, including full-length video versions, through their standard RSS feeds for seamless distribution in iHeartRadio.” The company goes on to say that this feature will 1) allow podcasters to control how their content is presented; 2) allow creators control over their monetization, with no revenue share required to iHeart; and 3) give them the freedom to have their videos hosted and served from wherever they want and not be tied to an iHeart-owned hosting provider. iHeartMedia chairman and CEO Bob Pittman explains, “While audio remains the backbone of the podcast medium, as well as its primary source of audience connection and the reason for the industry’s explosive growth, video podcasting is now emerging as a completely separate and incremental form to audio, in the same way that podcasting evolved as a new layer on top of broadcast radio. At iHeartMedia creators come first. Providing this new video distribution capability for free to our creators is an additional testament to our continuing focus on creators’ success and is consistent with how and why the podcast industry was built to begin with.”