Top spot for power player

Hip-hop outlet KPWR-FM (105.9) completed a year as the Southland’s top radio station, while the battle for the area’s favorite morning show tightened considerably with the departure of the host who controlled the time period for six years, according to the Arbitron ratings released Monday.

Though KPWR, “Power 106,” slipped somewhat from the fall ratings in its percentage of the Los Angeles-Orange County audience ages 12 and up, going from 5.4% to 5%, it still kept second-place KROQ-FM (106.7) at bay. The alternative rocker garnered 4.4% of the audience during the winter quarter survey, from Jan. 2 to March 26, duplicating its mark from the fall.

But KROQ’s “Kevin & Bean” morning show leapt from fourth to first place, filling a void left when the man who had an iron grip on morning drive, Renan Almendarez Coello, moved his show on Spanish-language KSCA-FM (101.9) from mornings to afternoons.

Coello held a whopping 6.8% of the audience from 6 to 10 a.m. weekdays in the fall ratings, but moved his program to 3 to 7 p.m. starting Feb. 3, saying that the morning show left him little time for other pursuits.

Coello predicted his listeners would follow him, and they did in droves. In afternoon drive, KSCA rocketed to second place with 4.9% of the audience, up from its fall showing of 24th with 1.6%. Power 106 remained No. 1 for the time slot, however.

Coello’s replacement in the morning, Eddie “Piolin” Sotelo, who came from KLOK-AM in San Jose, held onto enough of the audience to maintain second place. He captured 5% of the audience, while Bill Handel at talk station KFI-AM (640) came in third, with 4.9% of the listeners.

Following up in the tight morning race -- considered radio’s prime time because of the huge numbers of commuters listening in their cars -- was KPWR’s Big Boy, who slipped from third place (at 4.9%) to fourth place (with 4.8%). Steve Harvey on KKBT-FM (100.3) -- who frequently has fallen in behind Coello as the top-rated English-language morning host -- dropped from second to fifth, falling from 5% of the overall audience to 4.2%.

KFI also fared well overall, its weekly share of audience rising from 3.6% to 3.7%, moving from a tie for sixth last fall to a tie for fourth this winter. Its principal talk rival, KABC-AM (790), also moved up, increasing from 2.4% and 17th place in the fall to 2.5% and a 15th place tie in the winter. FM talker KLSX (97.1) remained in a 15th-place tie with 2.5%, the same figures as in the fall.

The area’s two all-news stations tied for 21st place with 2.1% of the audience. But while that represented an increase for KFWB-AM (980), which rose from 1.8% at 25th place last fall, KNX-AM (1070) fell from 2.2% and 18th place. Any benefit the stations reaped during the war with Iraq won’t be reflected until the next quarterly ratings survey.