According to Atlanta Media writer Rodney Ho at ajc.com, Nielsen provided a “note” in the book but did not punish the station or its parent company Cumulus Media, based in Atlanta. It did publicize the infraction so advertisers and rivals in the market were informed of the situation in hopes of discouraging anyone else from doing it down the road.
This is similar to what happened to sister Top40 WWWQ 99.7 FM Q100 around the same time. Q100’s survey distortion efforts were noted in the April Nielsen book month.
Nielsen wrote that Kicks on March 7, 2016 sent out an email to loyal listeners directing them to a “secret” contest website which asked various demographic information but also included a question inquiring if the survey taker would carry a “device that recorded all your radio listening” as part of a “radio ratings project.” One option was, yes, they already do.
This particular survey was flagged and taken down within 27 hours, a shorter period of time than the Q100 situation around the same time. That one was up for several days.
Tracy Johnson, a long-time radio consultant based in San Diego, has worked with both Kicks and Q100, including the Bert Show. He was responsible for the entire “Secret Contest” concept, but it’s unclear who came up with the Nielsen question and who ultimately cleared it, according to Ho.
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