The latest Joint National Listenership Research (JNLR) figures for Q1 2022 have been released, revealing changes in audience figures across Irish radio stations. Overall, RTÉ Radio now claims a 9.7% share of the available audience, which is up from 9.6%. Morning Ireland is up 4,000 listeners from the last survey three months ago and now stands at 437,000. Ryan Tubridy is up 4,000 to 335,000. Claire Byrne has added 6,000 listeners to her mid-morning slot and is now at 327,000. However, Louise Duffy’s one-hour noon slot is down 9,000 listeners to 213,000. Current affairs show News at One has seen a significant drop of 11,000 listeners and is now at 299,000, while Joe Duffy’s Liveline is now at 306,000, a drop of 4,000. Sunday with Miriam has dropped 25,000 in the latest survey and is now at 292,000.
Meanwhile, in the commercial radio sector, Newstalk Breakfast now has 149,000 listeners, a slight drop of 3,000 from the last survey, while there’s no change for Pat Kenny with 174,000. Sports fans have been backing Off the Ball at the weekends, with the Saturday show going up 9,000 to 137,000, while the Sunday show increased by 6,000 to 146,000. Over on Today FM, nearly half a million people are tuning in on a daily basis, an increase of 11,000. Early-morning stalwart Ian Dempsey has added 5,000 listeners, with a figure of 208,000. Ray Foley, who returned to the station in January 2022, got an extra 3,000 listeners and is now at 163,000.
The results reveal that breakfast and drive-time shows are performing the best across both RTÉ Radio and commercial radio stations, with listenership figures increasing significantly in the breakfast and weekend slots over the past few months. The success of radio amidst a saturated entertainment market indicates that it still remains a popular medium in Ireland and generates a greater connection with the audience.
Despite some setbacks with long-standing shows experiencing a drop in listenership, most radio stations are experiencing slight increases or remaining consistent with their regular audiences. The increased audiences could be attributed to further changes with the pandemic, with people needing to find solace in traditional media methods, in addition to more flexibility for remote listening. As Ireland slowly emerges from lockdown, radio stations may continue to play an important role in the daily lives of many with reliable news updates, engaging entertainment and informative discussions.
