#THINK ON NPR RADI DRIVERS#

NPR’s senior director of audience insights, Lori Kaplan, has said public radio’s audience includes a disproportionate percentage of workers who are able to do their jobs remotely during coronavirus shutdowns - and that these professionals are interested in continuing to work from home even after we’ve left coronavirus in the rearview mirror. Some of the changes in NPR’s audience mirror what we’ve seen elsewhere in the news industry - traffic to news sites spiked in the early months of the pandemic - but the pandemic’s long-term effects seem poised to have a unique impact on radio listenership.

The broadcaster, which avoided layoffs by implementing pay cuts and furloughs this summer, projected $12 to $15 million in coronavirus-related ad revenue losses and continues to compete alongside for-profit news outlets for a dwindling pool of advertising dollars. That’s not to say it’s been untouched by economic pain. In 2020, for the first time, NPR will make more money from underwriting on podcasts than from its radio shows. These changes have implications for NPR’s bottom line, which draws on a mix of underwriting, member station fees, government funds, and donations. NPR Music, through YouTube, saw its traffic increase by 90 percent.Live stream listeners increased 39 percent.Smart speaker streams and on-demand audio increased 29 percent.Unique weekly visitors to NPR.org increased 94 percent.Comparing spring 2019 to spring 2020, here’s where NPR saw its numbers move: In total, 57 million listen or watch or read NPR content each week, up 10 percent from this time last year. More people than ever are reaching NPR through the website, apps, livestreams, and smart speakers (“Alexa, I want to listen to NPR”). The dip in radio listenership - 22 percent - has coincided with a record number of people turning to NPR on virtually every other platform. And that threatens to alter the terrain for NPR for years to come.”Įven as its legacy platform’s audience has declined, though, NPR says it is reaching more people than ever.

“But many of those who listened on their commute have not rejoined from home. “People who listened to NPR shows on the radio at home before the pandemic by and large still do,” NPR’s own media correspondent, David Folkenflik, reported on July 15.

#THINK ON NPR RADI DRIVERS#

Half of AM/FM listening in the United States takes place in a car, but between reduced (or eliminated) commutes and social distancing, there’s been a steep decline in the drivers that make up public radio’s traditional broadcast audience. Since the pandemic took hold in the United States, NPR’s radio ratings have taken a nosedive.

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