{"success":true,"data":{"pressRelease":{"id":"123185","rtpr_id":"nBw9BX0K1a","ticker":"IHRT","exchange":"NASDAQ","all_tickers":["IHRT"],"title":"iHeartMedia Releases New Gen Z Consumer Study -- Unlocking the Community-Driven Gen Z Listener","author":"Business Wire","published_at":"2026-08-19T20:00:00.070Z","article_body":"iHeartMedia Releases New Gen Z Consumer Study -- Unlocking the\nCommunity-Driven Gen Z Listener\n\nFear of Judgment Is Shaping Gen Z Behavior and Fueling Radio’s Influence\nwith Younger Audiences\n\nReport Released to Marketers During a Panel Session with the Jonas Brothers at\niHeartMedia HQ on August 19\n\niHeartMedia, the leading audio company in America and the No. 1 podcast\npublisher globally according to Podtrac, today unveiled new consumer research,\nfielded through Critical Mass Media, examining Gen Z's relationship with audio\nand the surprising resilience of broadcast radio among younger audiences. The\nstudy reveals that Gen Z's desire for community and belonging is driving a\nsurprising resurgence in radio engagement, with the medium continuing to serve\nas a key source of music discovery, social connection and shared cultural\nexperiences for young listeners.\n\nAccording to Nielsen, broadcast radio reaches 90 percent of teenagers\n(13–19) monthly, ahead of YouTube (75 percent), TikTok (58 percent) and\nad-supported Spotify (26 percent). Crucially, radio dominates Gen Z's\nad-supported audio time with 47 percent, according to Edison Share of Ear,\noutpacing 31 percent for streaming music and 21 percent for podcasts.\n\n\"While Gen Z is conventionally thought to want everything on-demand and\ntailored to their needs, the data shows that teenagers are gravitating to the\nsafety and anonymity of radio to create community,\" said Lainie Fertick,\nPresident of Insights for iHeartMedia. \"In a world where young people often\nfeel pressure to curate how they present themselves online, radio offers a\nshared experience where identity isn't being evaluated and personal taste\nisn't on trial.\"\n\nThe new study explains why Gen Z connects with radio:\n\nFear of Judgment Is Shaping Gen Z Behavior - Growing up in an era defined by\nsocial media, mobile technology and AI has created a heightened sensitivity to\njudgment among younger consumers. 40 percent of Gen Z say they have decided\nnot to post something they care about on social media because they worried\npeers might use it to embarrass them. Additionally, 44 percent say they have\nactively reduced their social media usage, while 43 percent of teens report\nfeeling pressure to only post content that makes them look good to others.\nMore than one-third (37 percent) feel pressure to share only content that will\ngenerate a high number of likes or comments, and 45 percent have deleted posts\nthat received too little validation from others.\n\nMusic may define Gen Z's identity, but radio helps them connect without\njudgment: For Gen Z, music is far more than entertainment, it's a reflection\nof personal identity. Nearly all Gen Z listeners (96 percent) say the music\nthey choose says something about who they are, and 68 percent update their\nplaylists daily or weekly, compared to 44 percent of all listeners. Yet that\nself-expression comes with pressure: seven in 10 worry about being judged for\nwhat they play, more than double the rate of listeners age 35 and older.\n\nRadio offers an alternative. Rather than putting young listeners in the\nposition of selecting the soundtrack for a group, radio removes that\nresponsibility and the potential criticism that can come with it. 85 percent\nof Gen Z respondents say they feel less likely to be judged when listening to\nradio with others, while 77 percent say radio feels safer or less risky to\nplay in a group setting. Eight in 10 consider it appropriate for virtually any\naudience, including friends, parents, coworkers and children. This dynamic\nhelps explain why 84 percent default to radio when riding in a car with others\nand 60 percent say it's simply easier to enjoy as a group, making Gen Z the\nbiggest co-listening generation to date.\n\nCo-listening is a Gen Z behavior, not a legacy one: This co-listening trend is\nunique to Gen Z. 63 percent listen to radio with others frequently or nearly\nalways, versus 42 percent of all radio listeners — a 50 percent higher\nlikelihood than any other age group. Compared to all listeners, they\nover-index on listening with friends (59 percent vs 36 percent) parents (59\npercent vs 14 percent) and siblings (39 percent vs 13 percent). Unlike older\ngenerations who typically listen in the mornings, Gen Z’s co-listening time\nis concentrated in the late afternoon and evening when they’re often around\nothers. For 57 percent of respondents, co-listening happens naturally when\nfriends are together, and that’s often in the car (93 percent), running\nerrands (61 percent), road trips (57 percent) and commuting (54 percent).\n\nAirplay converts to conversation, and conversation moves product: An added\nbonus of co-listening is that it leads to more discussions between groups\ninfluenced by the shared experience. In the study, 80 percent of Gen Z\nrespondents say they like to talk to others about what they hear on the radio,\nwhether that’s songs, artists, news headlines, DJ bits and content, and even\nadvertisements. Overall, 91 percent say radio gives their social circles\nsomething to talk about and 90 percent say hearing it together sparks\nconversation afterward. In addition, 81 percent say they’re more likely to\ntalk about what they hear when listening with others than alone -- and 6 in 10\nsay mentioning a song, artist, brand or product out loud makes them more\nlikely to search for more information about it.\n\nThe data showed this generation values external curation with 68 percent more\nlikely to view radio as a way to discover new music and content than older\ngenerations. And when a Gen Z listener hears their song on the air, three\nthings happen: they feel much-needed validation of their tastes, belonging\nwith their community of young people and an emotional hit of surprise and\nnostalgia that a self-selected stream simply can't manufacture.\n\nThis research reveals that younger listeners are valuing community in response\nto early childhoods spent in isolation, and look for conflict-free\nentertainment to enjoy with the people they love most. That makes radio the\nshared, low-risk, high-conversation space where new music gets heard by\ncommunities rather than individuals.\n\n\"As Gen Z's purchasing power continues to grow, marketers need to understand\nnot just where they can reach this audience, but how influence happens,\" said\nLisa Coffey, Chief Business Officer for iHeartMedia. “Radio reaches Gen Z at\nscale in trusted, shared environments where discovery happens collectively and\nconversations happen naturally, giving brands a unique opportunity to become\npart of the cultural moment and drive meaningful engagement.”\n\nThe findings were presented by Lainie Fertick, President of Insights for\niHeartMedia on a panel discussion with the Jonas Brothers today, August 19 at\nthe iHeartMedia Headquarters in New York City.\n\nThe “Gen Z” Consumer Methodology:\n\nThis research was conducted by Critical Mass Media in June 2026 among a\nnational sample of 1,090 adults -- 18-64 Radio Listeners. Demos included 46%\nof participants aged adults 18-34 and 54% aged adults 35-64.\n\nAbout iHeartMedia, Inc.\n\niHeartMedia, Inc. [Nasdaq: IHRT] is the leading audio media company in\nAmerica, with nine out of ten Americans listening to iHeart broadcast radio in\nevery month. iHeart's broadcast radio assets alone have a larger audience in\nthe U.S. than any other media outlet and over four times the ad-enabled\naudience of the largest digital only audio service. iHeart is the largest\npodcast publisher according to both Podtrac and Triton, with more downloads\nthan the next two podcast publishers combined, has the most recognizable live\nevents across all genres of music, has the number one social footprint among\naudio players, has the highest-reach and most engaged influencers, and is the\nonly fully integrated audio ad tech solution across broadcast, streaming and\npodcasts. The company continues to leverage its strong audience connection and\nunparalleled consumer reach to build new platforms, products and services.\nVisit iHeartMedia.com\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iheartmedia.com%2F&esheet=54592065&newsitemid=20260819447466&lan=en-US&anchor=iHeartMedia.com&index=1&md5=9da9038cb6bb3d8f8e02cc5bba715487)\nfor more company information.\n\n\n\nView source version on businesswire.com:\nhttps://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260819447466/en/\n(https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260819447466/en/)\n\nMEDIA CONTACT\n\nAngel Aristone\n\nAngelAristone@iHeartMedia.com (mailto:AngelAristone@iHeartMedia.com)\n\n\nCopyright Business Wire 2026","article_body_html":"","raw_payload":{"data":{"id":"nBw9BX0K1a","title":"iHeartMedia Releases New Gen Z Consumer Study -- Unlocking the Community-Driven Gen Z Listener","author":"Business Wire","ticker":"IHRT","created":"2026-08-19T20:00:00.070Z","tickers":["IHRT"],"exchange":"NASDAQ","article_body":"iHeartMedia Releases New Gen Z Consumer Study -- Unlocking the\nCommunity-Driven Gen Z Listener\n\nFear of Judgment Is Shaping Gen Z Behavior and Fueling Radio’s Influence\nwith Younger Audiences\n\nReport Released to Marketers During a Panel Session with the Jonas Brothers at\niHeartMedia HQ on August 19\n\niHeartMedia, the leading audio company in America and the No. 1 podcast\npublisher globally according to Podtrac, today unveiled new consumer research,\nfielded through Critical Mass Media, examining Gen Z's relationship with audio\nand the surprising resilience of broadcast radio among younger audiences. The\nstudy reveals that Gen Z's desire for community and belonging is driving a\nsurprising resurgence in radio engagement, with the medium continuing to serve\nas a key source of music discovery, social connection and shared cultural\nexperiences for young listeners.\n\nAccording to Nielsen, broadcast radio reaches 90 percent of teenagers\n(13–19) monthly, ahead of YouTube (75 percent), TikTok (58 percent) and\nad-supported Spotify (26 percent). Crucially, radio dominates Gen Z's\nad-supported audio time with 47 percent, according to Edison Share of Ear,\noutpacing 31 percent for streaming music and 21 percent for podcasts.\n\n\"While Gen Z is conventionally thought to want everything on-demand and\ntailored to their needs, the data shows that teenagers are gravitating to the\nsafety and anonymity of radio to create community,\" said Lainie Fertick,\nPresident of Insights for iHeartMedia. \"In a world where young people often\nfeel pressure to curate how they present themselves online, radio offers a\nshared experience where identity isn't being evaluated and personal taste\nisn't on trial.\"\n\nThe new study explains why Gen Z connects with radio:\n\nFear of Judgment Is Shaping Gen Z Behavior - Growing up in an era defined by\nsocial media, mobile technology and AI has created a heightened sensitivity to\njudgment among younger consumers. 40 percent of Gen Z say they have decided\nnot to post something they care about on social media because they worried\npeers might use it to embarrass them. Additionally, 44 percent say they have\nactively reduced their social media usage, while 43 percent of teens report\nfeeling pressure to only post content that makes them look good to others.\nMore than one-third (37 percent) feel pressure to share only content that will\ngenerate a high number of likes or comments, and 45 percent have deleted posts\nthat received too little validation from others.\n\nMusic may define Gen Z's identity, but radio helps them connect without\njudgment: For Gen Z, music is far more than entertainment, it's a reflection\nof personal identity. Nearly all Gen Z listeners (96 percent) say the music\nthey choose says something about who they are, and 68 percent update their\nplaylists daily or weekly, compared to 44 percent of all listeners. Yet that\nself-expression comes with pressure: seven in 10 worry about being judged for\nwhat they play, more than double the rate of listeners age 35 and older.\n\nRadio offers an alternative. Rather than putting young listeners in the\nposition of selecting the soundtrack for a group, radio removes that\nresponsibility and the potential criticism that can come with it. 85 percent\nof Gen Z respondents say they feel less likely to be judged when listening to\nradio with others, while 77 percent say radio feels safer or less risky to\nplay in a group setting. Eight in 10 consider it appropriate for virtually any\naudience, including friends, parents, coworkers and children. This dynamic\nhelps explain why 84 percent default to radio when riding in a car with others\nand 60 percent say it's simply easier to enjoy as a group, making Gen Z the\nbiggest co-listening generation to date.\n\nCo-listening is a Gen Z behavior, not a legacy one: This co-listening trend is\nunique to Gen Z. 63 percent listen to radio with others frequently or nearly\nalways, versus 42 percent of all radio listeners — a 50 percent higher\nlikelihood than any other age group. Compared to all listeners, they\nover-index on listening with friends (59 percent vs 36 percent) parents (59\npercent vs 14 percent) and siblings (39 percent vs 13 percent). Unlike older\ngenerations who typically listen in the mornings, Gen Z’s co-listening time\nis concentrated in the late afternoon and evening when they’re often around\nothers. For 57 percent of respondents, co-listening happens naturally when\nfriends are together, and that’s often in the car (93 percent), running\nerrands (61 percent), road trips (57 percent) and commuting (54 percent).\n\nAirplay converts to conversation, and conversation moves product: An added\nbonus of co-listening is that it leads to more discussions between groups\ninfluenced by the shared experience. In the study, 80 percent of Gen Z\nrespondents say they like to talk to others about what they hear on the radio,\nwhether that’s songs, artists, news headlines, DJ bits and content, and even\nadvertisements. Overall, 91 percent say radio gives their social circles\nsomething to talk about and 90 percent say hearing it together sparks\nconversation afterward. In addition, 81 percent say they’re more likely to\ntalk about what they hear when listening with others than alone -- and 6 in 10\nsay mentioning a song, artist, brand or product out loud makes them more\nlikely to search for more information about it.\n\nThe data showed this generation values external curation with 68 percent more\nlikely to view radio as a way to discover new music and content than older\ngenerations. And when a Gen Z listener hears their song on the air, three\nthings happen: they feel much-needed validation of their tastes, belonging\nwith their community of young people and an emotional hit of surprise and\nnostalgia that a self-selected stream simply can't manufacture.\n\nThis research reveals that younger listeners are valuing community in response\nto early childhoods spent in isolation, and look for conflict-free\nentertainment to enjoy with the people they love most. That makes radio the\nshared, low-risk, high-conversation space where new music gets heard by\ncommunities rather than individuals.\n\n\"As Gen Z's purchasing power continues to grow, marketers need to understand\nnot just where they can reach this audience, but how influence happens,\" said\nLisa Coffey, Chief Business Officer for iHeartMedia. “Radio reaches Gen Z at\nscale in trusted, shared environments where discovery happens collectively and\nconversations happen naturally, giving brands a unique opportunity to become\npart of the cultural moment and drive meaningful engagement.”\n\nThe findings were presented by Lainie Fertick, President of Insights for\niHeartMedia on a panel discussion with the Jonas Brothers today, August 19 at\nthe iHeartMedia Headquarters in New York City.\n\nThe “Gen Z” Consumer Methodology:\n\nThis research was conducted by Critical Mass Media in June 2026 among a\nnational sample of 1,090 adults -- 18-64 Radio Listeners. Demos included 46%\nof participants aged adults 18-34 and 54% aged adults 35-64.\n\nAbout iHeartMedia, Inc.\n\niHeartMedia, Inc. [Nasdaq: IHRT] is the leading audio media company in\nAmerica, with nine out of ten Americans listening to iHeart broadcast radio in\nevery month. iHeart's broadcast radio assets alone have a larger audience in\nthe U.S. than any other media outlet and over four times the ad-enabled\naudience of the largest digital only audio service. iHeart is the largest\npodcast publisher according to both Podtrac and Triton, with more downloads\nthan the next two podcast publishers combined, has the most recognizable live\nevents across all genres of music, has the number one social footprint among\naudio players, has the highest-reach and most engaged influencers, and is the\nonly fully integrated audio ad tech solution across broadcast, streaming and\npodcasts. The company continues to leverage its strong audience connection and\nunparalleled consumer reach to build new platforms, products and services.\nVisit iHeartMedia.com\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.iheartmedia.com%2F&esheet=54592065&newsitemid=20260819447466&lan=en-US&anchor=iHeartMedia.com&index=1&md5=9da9038cb6bb3d8f8e02cc5bba715487)\nfor more company information.\n\n\n\nView source version on businesswire.com:\nhttps://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260819447466/en/\n(https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260819447466/en/)\n\nMEDIA CONTACT\n\nAngel Aristone\n\nAngelAristone@iHeartMedia.com (mailto:AngelAristone@iHeartMedia.com)\n\n\nCopyright Business Wire 2026"},"type":"article","timestamp":"2026-08-19T20:00:00.423123234Z","server_sent_at_ms":1787169600423},"received_at":"2026-08-19T20:00:00.722Z","source_url":"https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260819447466/en/"},"analysis":{"id":"112169","press_release_id":"123185","analysis_json":{"industry":{"label":"Media","sector":"Communication Services"},"redFlags":[],"eventType":"operations_update","narrative":"iHeartMedia released a new consumer study indicating that broadcast radio reaches 90% of teenagers monthly, surpassing YouTube, TikTok, and Spotify in reach and dominating 47% of Gen Z's ad-supported audio time.\n\nThe research suggests that Gen Z's fear of judgment on social media is driving a resurgence in radio consumption as a safer, shared environment for music discovery and connection.\n\nExecutives emphasized that this high rate of 'co-listening' creates natural conversation and engagement opportunities for marketers targeting the demographic's growing purchasing power.","sentiment":"bullish","agentHooks":{"shouldPost":false,"suggestedAngle":"iHeartMedia study claims radio dominates Gen Z audio time, countering digital-only narratives."},"keyFigures":{"customDimensions":{"study_sample_size":1090,"tiktok_reach_percent":58,"youtube_reach_percent":75,"gen_z_radio_reach_percent":90,"gen_z_co_listening_percent":63,"all_listener_co_listening_percent":42,"spotify_ad_supported_reach_percent":26,"gen_z_ad_supported_audio_share_percent":47}},"quotedText":"While Gen Z is conventionally thought to want everything on-demand and tailored to their needs, the data shows that teenagers are gravitating to the safety and anonymity of radio to create community","namedEntities":{"people":[{"name":"Lainie Fertick","role":"President of Insights"},{"name":"Lisa Coffey","role":"Chief Business Officer"},{"name":"Angel Aristone","role":"Media Contact"}],"products":["broadcast radio"],"companies":[{"name":"iHeartMedia","ticker":"IHRT"},{"name":"Critical Mass Media","relationship":"research partner"},{"name":"Podtrac","relationship":"data source"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"materialImpact":{"score":2,"reasoning":"Marketing press release highlighting the continued relevance of iHeartMedia's radio assets among Gen Z. While the data supports the company's advertising narrative, it constitutes an operational update rather than a material financial event."},"tickerRelevance":{"others":[],"primary":"IHRT"},"globalImportance":15,"audienceRelevance":25,"eventTypeSecondary":[],"importanceComponents":{"tickerTier":"mid_cap","eventGravity":"marketing_research"}},"event_type":"operations_update","event_type_secondary":null,"sentiment":"bullish","material_impact_score":2,"narrative":"iHeartMedia released a new consumer study indicating that broadcast radio reaches 90% of teenagers monthly, surpassing YouTube, TikTok, and Spotify in reach and dominating 47% of Gen Z's ad-supported audio time.\n\nThe research suggests that Gen Z's fear of judgment on social media is driving a resurgence in radio consumption as a safer, shared environment for music discovery and connection.\n\nExecutives emphasized that this high rate of 'co-listening' creates natural conversation and engagement opportunities for marketers targeting the demographic's growing purchasing power.","key_figures":{"customDimensions":{"study_sample_size":1090,"tiktok_reach_percent":58,"youtube_reach_percent":75,"gen_z_radio_reach_percent":90,"gen_z_co_listening_percent":63,"all_listener_co_listening_percent":42,"spotify_ad_supported_reach_percent":26,"gen_z_ad_supported_audio_share_percent":47}},"named_entities":{"people":[{"name":"Lainie Fertick","role":"President of Insights"},{"name":"Lisa Coffey","role":"Chief Business Officer"},{"name":"Angel Aristone","role":"Media Contact"}],"products":["broadcast radio"],"companies":[{"name":"iHeartMedia","ticker":"IHRT"},{"name":"Critical Mass Media","relationship":"research partner"},{"name":"Podtrac","relationship":"data source"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"model_name":"glm-4.7","prompt_hash":"sha256:727b4b9429a443af","schema_hash":"sha256:05005c02d9cffac9","created_at":"2026-08-19T20:01:54.823Z","global_importance":15,"audience_relevance":25,"importance_components":{"tickerTier":"mid_cap","eventGravity":"marketing_research"}},"durationMs":114092,"modelName":"glm-4.7"}}