Radio Research Consortium
| Company type | Non-Profit |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media Research |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Headquarters | Olney, Maryland , United States |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Joanne Church, Past President |
| Products | ratings data |
| Website | rrconline.org |
The Radio Research Consortium (RRC) operates as a non-profit organization headquartered in Olney, Maryland, specializing in providing radio audience metrics to non-commercial broadcasters throughout the United States. The consortium obtains its data through a partnership agreement with Nielsen Audio.
History
Established in 1981 by a coalition of 14 stations, RRC opened access to market analytics that had been previously limited to commercial radio entities. This access empowered public radio outlets to validate their substantial audience shares to advertisers and underwriters. For example, within the San Francisco Market, KQED-FM consistently ranked second or third during 2005-2006 but was omitted from conventional commercial-oriented reports such as those from Arbitron featured in Radio & Records.
Among RRC’s original founders were former employees of Arbitron, including the ex-Manager of Production and Radio Market Reports. Presently, RRC supports over 600 clients, which include stations affiliated with The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Public Radio, and Public Radio International.
The consortium has encountered criticism regarding its role in the increasing uniformity of public radio programming, particularly within its primary market of Washington DC.