May Book: The Ups and Downs in the Little Rock Market

Arkansas Business.com has more numbers from the May book. As the article points out, "it was KTHV-TV, Channel 11's turn to see at least some of that decline. KATV-TV, Channel 7, experienced faded numbers in February, and KARK-TV, Channel 4, saw a decrease in November."

The article has the numbers. Below are a few comments the GM's from the stations made to AB.com:

> While Larry Audas, general manager at KTHV, sticks by his mantra that any given ratings book -- good or bad -- is "the battle, not the war," another station leader compared the ratings to auto racing.

"The Little Rock market, for the first time in many years, has three television stations -- KARK, KATV and KTHV -- that are at parity in relative strength," said Rick Rogala, general manager at Nexstar Broadcasting Group-owned KARK, which does not subscribe to the Nielsen's.

"It's like watching a NASCAR race, with three cars running side by side down the straightaway after each car leading around a different turn," he said. "We continue to hear from more and more viewers who are responding to our focus on local news that is relevant to their lives in Arkansas. That's the fuel that powers our engine."

> "I am so very pleased to see the viewers of central Arkansas continue to embrace our news offering," said Chuck Spohn, general manager at KLRT. "I expect this growth to continue as more and more Arkansans discover Fox 16 News."