In the latest Arbitron ratings in Atlanta, the departure of Viva 105.7 boosted El Patron’s ratings while listeners found religion.

El Patron jumped from a 2.9 ratings to a 3.6 rating overall, good for 12th place. The station leapt to second among 18 to 34 year olds, up from fifth.

Viva’s replacement  Groove 105.7, which plays a mix of dance music from the 1970s until today, opened at a relatively soft 22nd place overall but did finish a respectable 12th among 18 to 34 year olds. Its morning numbers were far worse than that of Viva but it’s overall numbers were up.

The new peoople meter system, now just over a year old in Atlanta, has created strange anomalies, especially in the 18-34 demographics. This indicates Arbitron may be having problems getting younger folks to carry around the beeper-sized device to capture radio listening. It’s a similar problem they have had when they used to collect paper diaries. I suspect this is why there are much greater changes month to month in that demo than the older (and larger) demo of 25-54.

This past month, for instance, all three Christian stations (Praise, Fish, J93.3) saw unusually big jumps, especially among 18-34 year olds. (Fish did go to Christmas just a week ago, after this ratings period ended.) Praise’s 18-34 numbers were double those from five months ago. Fish’s 18-34 morning numbers for Kevin & Taylor more than tripled in one month, skyrocketing to a ranking of No. 3 overall from a tie for 16th. That’s an unreal jump. And both Praise and the Fish beat 95.5/The Beat (of all stations!) in the 18-34 demo.

The top 3 stations took a hit. V-103 had its worst month since April though it’s still No. 1 by a mile. WSB-AM’s ratings are down about 20 percent since January. Kiss also saw its lowest ratings of the year in November.

Country keeps on rockin’. Kicks 101.5 continued its strong recent performance, finishing fifth among 25-54 and third mid-days in that demo. Its ratings are up 60% in that age group since May. The Bull also had its best 25-54 demo numbers this year, though it lost a bit of momentum in the younger demos.

Star 94 had its worst overall ratings this year, with Cindy & Ray garnering their lowest numbers since switching to mornings in the spring. Once a dominant 25-54 presence, Star has slipped all the way down to 17th, tied with True Oldies and Project. Q100, after a few relatively lackluster months, saw a jump in ratings in November. The station now has one of its biggest leads ever over Star.

The Regular Guys on Rock 100.5 continue to shed listeners among 18 to 34 years olds. In June, the show ranked third in that demo. In November? Tied for 11th. Their 25-54 demo numbers have been more or less consistent this year.

99X at 97.9 has been losing listeners alarmingly the past two months. Among 18-34, the station ranked 17th. Now it’s down to 22nd (26th in mornings.).

I have some general numbers for the sports stations. As has been the case recently, the Fan has beaten the Zone overall although the 25-54 demo numbers are much closer. The two stations compete only among men 25-54 and I don’t have those breakdowns at the moment.

Although Arbitron bills this as the “November” ratings, it actually covers more of October. This ratings period covers October 15 through November 11.

Top 25 overall 6 plus
1. V-103
2. WSB-AM
3. Kiss, Kicks (tie)
5. Praise
6. WABE-FM
7. Fish
8. Majic
9. Q100, True Oldies (tie)
11. The Beat, El Patron (tie0
13. The Bull
14. Hot, the River (tie)
16. Star
17. Project, Dave (Tie)
19. The Fan
20. WGST
21. Groove
22. The Zone
23. Rock 100.5
24. J93.3
25. Legend

Top 20, 25-54
1. V-103
2. Kiss, WSB-AM, B98.5 (tie)
5. Kicks
6. Praise
7. Q100
8. El Patron
9. Majic
10. The Bull
11. Fish
12. The River
13. Hot
14. Dave
15. WABE
16. The Beat
17. Project, Star, True Oldies (tie)
20. Groove/ The Fan (tie)

Top 20, 18-34 overall
1. V-103
2. El Patron
3. Q100
4. Hot
5. Fish (wow! Never seen that before!)
6. Praise
7. The Beat
8. Project, Kicks (tie)
10. Majic, Star (tie)
12. Groove
13. B98.5
14. The Bull
15. Dave
16. Kiss
17. River
18. WSB-AM
19. True Oldies, J93.3 (tie)

Top 10 morning shows 25-54
1. Frank & Wanda, V-103
2. Scott Slade, WSB-AM
3. Bert Show, Q100
4. Tom Joyner, Kiss 104.1
5. Cadillac & Dallas, Kicks 101.5
6. Steve & Vikki, B98.5
7. Morning Edition, WABE-FM
8. Steve Harvey, Majic 107.5
9. Patrones de la Manana, El Patron
10. Yolanda Adams, Praise 102.5

Top 10 morning shows 18-34
1. Frank & Wanda, V-103
2. Bert Show, Q100
3. Kevin & Taylor, Fish
4. Patrones de la Manana, El Patron
5. Rickey Smiley, Hot 107.9
6. Yolanda Adams, Praise 102.5 (never seen that before!)
7. Cadillac & Dallas, Kicks 101.5
8. Steve Harvey, Majic 107.5
9. Shaffee and El Hefe, Project 9-6-1
10. CJ & Murph Dawg, 95.5/The Beat