"El Mandril" |
KLAX 97.9 FM, the regional-Mexican-music station that features
Ricardo "El Mandril" Sanchez during morning drive, once again led
that all-important 6-10 a.m. weekday slot, when millions of people are turning
to the radio as they begin their day.
According to the LA Times, Sanchez first leapt to the top
spot in June, when he bested talk station KFI 640 AM 5.3 to 5.0 share. He
pulled farther ahead in July, beating KFI and alternative rock station KROQ-106.7 FM 5.9 to 4.7. Then Sanchez really hit
the gas in August. While KFI and KROQ — the latter featuring Kevin Ryder and
Gene "Bean" Baxter — remained tied at second, inching ahead to 4.8,
Sanchez pulled away with a 6.5 share of the audience.
KFI, whose morning lineup features local host Bill Handel,
followed by the first hour of Rush Limbaugh's national show, had long been the
undisputed leader in that part of the day. Only three times from 2009 to 2012
was KFI out of first place in morning drive; but August marked the fifth time
so far this year that the Handel-Limbaugh team was looking up at its
competitors.
The August survey was the last to feature onetime ratings
leader Eddie "PiolĂn" Sotelo on regional-Mexican-music station
KSCA-101.9 FM — albeit for only his last three weekdays on the air. The
station's parent company, Univision Communications Inc., abruptly canceled his
show July 22 amid sexual harassment allegations. Since then, Sotelo has sued former
colleagues and signed with SiriusXM.
From 2005 to 2008, Sotelo was the one with the stranglehold
on morning ratings, but lately he had resided in the lower ranks of the Top 10. In August, with Sotelo gone for most of the
survey, KSCA and its morning show fell to a fifth-place tie at 3.9%, the same
as KBIG's morning host, Sean Valentine.
Sanchez's dominance is remarkable because he had been in
seventh place as recently as April, and was 10th in January.
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