March was another tough month for radio--with a 2 percent drop in local advertising revenue compared to March 2005, according to the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB). Local ad revenue has traditionally
been a mainstay for radio stations. As in January and February, however, March saw a slight rise in national ad revenue, which grew by 1 percent--perhaps because of a turnaround at radio giant Clear
Channel, which owns the largest national network of radio stations. Altogether, national and local revenues dropped by about 1 percent. This decline is paired with a comparable shift from spot to
non-spot ad spending: non-spot ad revenue grew by 5 percent in March, but together non-spot and spot revenue sank 1 percent.
--Erik Sass