A media plan dominated by digital audio, social media or television may leave more consumers unreached than advertisers assume, according to Pierre Bouvard. The chief insights officer of the Cumulus Media | Westwood One Audio Active Group argues that adding AM/FM radio in the United States can close those gaps. His new six-slide analysis draws on 2026 data from MRI–Simmons, Edison Research and Nielsen.
Among U.S. adults aged 25–54, MRI-Simmons places YouTube’s monthly reach at 57%, rising to 83% when advertisers add AM/FM radio. Combining radio with Instagram increases reach from 50% to 80%, while adding it to TikTok raises reach from 34% to 72%. Bouvard uses the figures to challenge media plans that treat individual digital platforms as self-sufficient mass-reach buys.
Edison Research data tells a similar story for ad-supported audio. Spotify, Pandora and podcasts together reach 32% of U.S. adults each day, while adding AM/FM radio lifts combined reach to 72%. Nielsen data indicates that radio increases weekly TV reach from 49% to 81% among 18–34s and from 65% to 86% among 25–54s.
Bouvard frames reach as a driver of brand growth, mental availability and customer acquisition rather than repeated exposure to narrowly defined audiences. His post also compares radio and television’s weekly reach with the monthly usage of several digital platforms, an important distinction when interpreting the rankings. The full analysis below sets out his case for treating AM/FM radio as an incremental component of digital audio, social media and television plans.
You can view or download Bouvard’s six-slide analysis below, and watch a 10-minute video of the key findings here.
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