Huston, we have a problem with 2FM

JENNY HUSTON signed off from RTÉ 2FM in September after nine years with a stable listenership of 12,000 in her 9pm -11pm time slot, according to last week’s Joint National Listenership Research survey.

Fans of Huston’s “indie rock, pop and electro” musical taste and easy delivery were naturally disappointed when the DJ decided to take up RTÉ’s voluntary severance offer to pursue other interests in the music business, but supporters of campaigns such as Women on Air may also have noticed that her departure has further unbalanced the gender make-up of the 2FM line-up – there are now no women hosting shows on the station from Monday to Thursday.

Given that the whole point of RTÉ’s severance scheme is to save money, station bosses were unable to replace Huston with another female DJ or indeed with anyone else, and her two-hour slot is now being filled by Dave Fanning staying on air for an hour longer and Dan Hegarty coming on air an hour earlier.

The latest JNLR book showed that 26,000 people listened to Fanning’s 7-9pm show, while 5,000 tuned into Hegarty’s late slot, with his audience having already grown 1,000 since the previous survey.

Both presenters are now likely to enjoy a boost in their total audience reaches as a result of their longer time slots – meaning Huston’s departure is potentially good news for fellow ex-Phantom DJ Hegarty in particular, but not so great for indie fans who enjoy a break from male voices on a school night.