The first full national radio ratings survey of 2026 has revealed significant shifts in audience share following the controversial on-air exit of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O” Henderson from the KIIS FM breakfast show, with ABC Radio experiencing substantial listener losses while KIIS FM maintained relatively stable ratings despite the departure of its long-running hosts.
According to the Herald Sun report dated April 23, 2026, ABC Radio “haemorrhages listeners” in the latest survey period, while KIIS FM “picks up” audience share in the aftermath of the Kyle and Jackie O exit. The report specifies that the ratings data reflects the first full national survey conducted after the duo’s termination, capturing listener behavior during a period when the controversy surrounding their departure was still fresh in the public domain.
Supplementary reporting from the Sydney Morning Herald confirms that the Kyle and Jackie O Show’s final ratings survey ended with diminished performance in key markets. In Sydney, the program lost 60,000 cumulative listeners, finishing with 636,000 total listeners and maintaining a 12.7% audience share—unchanged from the final result of 2025 but now 4 percentage points behind market leader Ben Fordham on 2GB. Despite the audience decline, the show’s share percentage remained stable due to proportional decreases across competing breakfast programs.
In Melbourne, where the duo had completed a two-year stint prior to their termination, the Kyle and Jackie O Show registered a marginal gain of 0.1 percentage points, rising to a 5.1% share. However, this increase did not improve their market position, leaving them in eighth place among Melbourne breakfast shows. Cumulative listenership in Melbourne remained unchanged at 403,000 compared to the previous survey period.
The survey period, which ran from January 18 to February 28, 2026, captured most of the time when Sandilands and Henderson were still on air together. Jackie Henderson took one week off-air at the end of the survey period following an on-air altercation with Sandilands on February 20, during which she was berated by her co-host. Sandilands hosted the show alone for the final week of the survey, marking the last time the duo appeared together on air before their official termination.
Following their exit, Jase & Lauren, who had previously been replaced by Kyle and Jackie O on the Nova breakfast show in Melbourne, returned to the No. 1 position among commercial networks in that city. Their program achieved an 11.1% audience share, up from 8.8% in the prior survey. The perennial market leader Russel & Ross on 3AW talkback radio retained the top spot overall with an 18.9% share, though this represented a decrease from their previous 19.8%.
Additional context from Radio Today highlights industry reaction to the results, with veteran radio commentator Greg Byrnes describing the survey outcomes as “stunning” and characterizing the day as “sad for our industry,” reflecting broader concerns about volatility in audience loyalty and the impact of high-profile talent departures on established radio franchises.
The ratings shakeup underscores the ongoing challenges facing commercial radio in maintaining audience engagement amid evolving listener habits and high-stakes personnel changes. While KIIS FM managed to limit ratings erosion despite losing its most prominent breakfast hosts, the sustained losses at ABC Radio suggest deeper structural challenges within the public broadcaster’s radio division that may require strategic reassessment.