PPM scrutinized in LAT

TODAY’S READING ASSIGNMENT: Three years after it replaced the Arbitron diary, the polarizing Portable People Meter listener-measurement system gets scrutinized in the Calendar section of today’s L.A. Times. In the piece, titled “Don't touch that radio dial—Arbitron is listening,” KROQ and CBS Radio programming mastermind Kevin Weatherly acknowledges to writer Steve Carney that he’s implemented certain lessons from PPM: Eliminate clutter, cut down on DJ patter and be judicious with new music. “A loyal KROQ listener might have neglected to mention it in an Arbitron diary, but the People Meter reveals every time he switches away upon hearing the first notes of a song he can't abide,” Carney notes. "It's definitely a big improvement in the way we measure radio listening," says Weatherly. "Any methodology is going to have its critics. At least this measures actual listening." (8/24a)