Format Counts: Country And Religion Have The Most Stations, Are They’re Adding More.

Aside from ranking their usual first and second in Inside Radio/PrecisionTrak’s monthly format counts, what else do country and religion — the latter including religious teaching, hymns, and other related content — have in common? Both have added more stations in the U.S. every month since May.

For religion, that has been the case since February of this year, having brought in 22 new outlets over the past seven months, while country, still comfortably ahead of religion by 116 stations, has added 13 over that same period. Since May, country has added 12, while religion gained 15.

Two other formats in the top 10 have also only added stations since May. Fifth-ranked Spanish, including all Spanish-language formats, added 11, while eighth-ranked classic rock welcomed seven new outlets.

Taking the longer view, religion and fourth-place contemporary Christian have added the most stations year-over-year, with 26 and 21 new outlets, respectively, from last to this September, compared to 19 and 16 more since January. Spanish is the only other double-digit gainer in the top 10, having added 15 year-over-year and 12 for 2024-to-date. The only other format to gain both ways is classic rock, while country has only added stations year-to-date, while down from a year ago.

As for the top 10’s other five formats, third-ranked news/talk, while shedding 27 stations since September 2023 and 19 since January, lost none from August to September, likely due to a heavier-than-usual news cycle with the Presidential candidates’ debate and storms across the U.S. dominating the headlines. Losing the most is sixth-ranked variety — including stations with three or more distinct formats, either block-programmed or simultaneously — down 40 year-over-year and 30 since January, with a steady 34-outlet drop over the past seven months.

The remaining three formats have shed at least 10 stations, whichever way you look at it. Classic hits, ranked seventh, is down 18 from last September and 14 since January, although it picked up two new outlets in September. Since the first of the year, 10th-ranked Top 40 has lost 20 stations without adding a single one, with its monthly totals down or flat every month since January. Sports, in ninth place, has shed 11 either way, even as it saw six new stations come in during August.

Just below the top 10, both 11th-ranked adult contemporary and 13th-place alternative rock have lost a negligible number of stations: three year-over-year, and one year-to-date for the former, and two both ways for the latter. Hot AC, ranked 12th, is a different story, with total stations down 23 since September 2023 and 13 since January 2024, and no new stations recorded in the past year.