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July 2026: Hybrid & Teaching Listeners: The Best of Both Worlds

by Chuck Finney, President

Some Christian Radio listeners want more than a great playlist—and the 2025 Finney Media Why Listen Survey  shows Hybrid and Teaching listeners fit that description perfectly. They’re drawn to stations that combine uplifting music with meaningful conversations and biblical truth.

For these listeners, music creates the atmosphere, but teaching and engaging content keep them coming back. They value Bible teaching, practical life application, and discussions that help them grow in their faith while navigating everyday life.

They also appreciate variety. A thoughtful mix of encouraging songs, trusted personalities, and relevant topics creates a listening experience that feels both inspiring and useful. Rather than choosing between music ormessage, they want both working together.

The takeaway? Hybrid and Teaching listeners are looking for content that encourages their hearts and strengthens their faith. When stations successfully blend great music with authentic conversation and solid biblical teaching, they’re creating something listeners don’t just enjoy—they depend on.

By Chuck Finney, President

If you think Christian podcast listeners are flocking to Apple Podcasts and Spotify, the 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey tells a different story.

Among listeners of Hybrid (Teaching & Music) stations who heard a Christian podcast online in the past week, their favorite destination is a station or ministry app (49%). YouTube follows closely at 43 percent, with station and ministry websites reaching 36 percent. Meanwhile, Apple Podcasts (14%) and Spotify (12%) are far behind.

For All-Teaching station listeners, YouTube takes the crown at 50 percent. Station and ministry apps (46%) and websites (46%) are close behind, creating a three-way race at the top. Spotify (12%) and Apple Podcasts (11%) remain secondary choices.

The big takeaway? Christian podcast listeners aren’t just looking for content—they’re connecting directly with trusted ministries and stations. Or they are connecting through YouTube. Whether through an app, a website, or YouTube, they’re choosing platforms that keep them close to the voices they know best.

And what about Google Play, iHeart, and TuneIn? They’re all under 10 percent, making them bit players in a podcast landscape dominated by ministry-owned platforms and YouTube.

Coming in July: The heart of the Finney Media Why Listen® Survey. We compare the Top Main Reasons Hybrid and Teaching listeners listen. It’s very much about Biblical reasons.

by Chuck Finney, President

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey shows Christian podcast listening isn’t one-size-fits-all—it grows as Christian radio content gets deeper.

Among CCM listeners, 35 percent tuned into a Christian podcast during the last week, treating podcasts like a side dish to their music-driven routine.

Hybrid (Music & Teaching) listeners jump to 56 percent, happily mixing songs with substance and using podcasts to go a little deeper on their own time.

Teaching listeners lead the pack at 68 percent, where podcasts aren’t extra—they’re essential. For them, it’s all about digging in, learning more, and staying engaged.

In short: the more teaching-focused the listener, the more podcasts become part of their daily spiritual rhythm.

Coming in June: We dive deep into where Christian radio listeners access podcasts. Sneak Peak: It’s a YouTube world.

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey gives us a peek behind the curtain of what actually inspires Christian radio listeners to give—and the results are both encouraging and a little surprising.

First, the big picture: Hybrid listeners (Teaching + Music) and Teaching-only listeners are almost perfectly in sync on the “why.” A full 85 percent of both groups say believing in the ministry’s mission is very important. And nearly as many feel personally called by God to give (84% Hybrid, 83% Teaching). In other words, generosity starts in the heart, not the wallet.

But here’s where things get interesting: Hybrid listeners seem a bit more stirred by emotion and momentum. They’re more likely to be moved by powerful, life-changing stories (32% vs. 27%) and are notably more responsive when there’s an urgent need (36% vs. 27%). Add a ticking clock or a clear goal, and Hybrid listeners lean in just a bit more.

They also slightly edge out Teaching listeners in valuing biblical encouragement to give (67% vs. 63%). Meanwhile, flashy extras—like free gifts or public recognition—barely move the needle for either group.

The takeaway? Faith fuels the decision, but for Hybrid listeners, a great story and a little urgency can help turn inspiration into action.

Coming in May: An inside look at how Hybrid and Teaching listeners hear Christian podcasts. Need more tips to take your next fundraising campaign to the next level? Our Fundraising Consultant Jon Hull has a few more insights to help you out in a special BONUS ARTICLE.

What makes someone reach for the preset button on Christian radio? The latest 2025 Why Listen  Surveyfrom Finney Media gives us a pretty clear answer—and some of the results might make programmers smile (and maybe sweat a little). We asked listeners when they’re “Very” or “Somewhat Likely” to turn the station off.

The biggest tune-out trigger for everyone? Easy. A negative, angry, or judgmental tone. A whopping 78 percent of Hybrid (Music + Teaching) listeners and 71 percent of all-Teaching listeners say that’s their cue to exit. In other words, if the vibe gets cranky, the audience gets gone. Listeners want encouragement, not a scolding.

After that, the paths start to split a bit.

Hybrid listeners show their music-first instincts. Commercials (47%) and songs they don’t like (47%) tie for second place. They’ll also drift away if the topic isn’t interesting (46%) or if the announcer talks too much (42%). Translation: keep the flow moving and the music strong.

Teaching listeners, on the other hand, are more content-focused. Their next triggers are songs they don’t like (56%) – interesting given that Teaching stations don’t play songs: topics they’re not interested in (53%), announcers talking too much (46%), and songs they’re tired of (41%).

The takeaway? Keep the tone hopeful, pick great songs, and remember: sometimes the best thing a host can say… is less.

Coming in April: Why do Hybrid and Teaching Listeners give? How are they the same or different?

The heart of the Finney Media Why Listen® Survey is understanding listeners’ reasons for tuning in. While Top Reasons are often similar by formats, they’re not exactly the same. Today we’ll take a closer look at how Hybrid and Teaching listeners differ, and how that might affect the way you program your station or program.

Hybrid

Reason Percentage
1. It Helps You Worship God Throughout the Day 88%
2. You Like Worshipful Christian Music 87%
3. It Helps You Grow Spiritually 82%
4. You Want to Be Encouraged 77%
5. You Want to Help Spread Truth 62%

Teaching

Reason Percentage
1. It Helps You Grow Spiritually 91%
2. It Helps You Understand the Bible Better 84%
3. It Helps You Worship God Throughout the Day 83%
4. You Want to Hear Sermons 77%
5. You Want To Be Encouraged 71%

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey includes almost 12,000 Christian radio listeners nationwide—2,953 from Teaching and Music (Hybrid) Stations and 3,087 from Teaching Stations and Programs.

Hybrid and Teaching listeners give similar reasons for listening. “Helps you worship God”, “Grow spiritually,” “To be encouraged” are common to the two formats. As we look at the differences in rank, however, we notice two things:

  1. Hybrid listeners are more heart first, head second (Worship at no. 1 and no. 2). Teaching listeners are more head first, heart second (Understand the Bible, Hear sermons).
  2. Hybrid listeners want it simpler. Teaching listeners want more in depth.

As you piece together your programming, lean more into heart or head depending on which one you are. Lean more into simple, concise, snack-sized or more in-depth depending on which one you are.

Coming in March: We compare and analyze the Top Main Reasons for Leaving. Why do listeners tune out or turn off? How are Hybrid and Teaching listeners different?

 

Hybrid

Rank/Marital Status % of Hybrid Respondents
1. Married first time 46%
2. Remarried 18%
3. Divorced 13%
4. Widowed 12%
5. Single/Never Married 10%

Teaching

Rank/Marital Status % of Teaching Respondents
1. Married first time 44%
2. Remarried 19%
3. Divorced 14%
4. Widowed 12%
5. Single/Never Married 9%

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey includes almost 12,000 Christian radio listeners nationwide—2,953 from Teaching and Music (Hybrid) Stations and 3,087 from Teaching Stations and Programs

Check out the numbers on marital status. Less than half married the first time. About a third divorced or re-married. Over one in ten widowed. About one in ten never married.

It helps explain why, when we ask about airing Christian marriage advice on the radio we get mixed results. Almost as if the married folks are saying “I could use some of that!” And the non-married folks – about a third – are saying “Not Interested.” It makes planning for Valentine’s Day interesting. It’s not necessarily a happy day.

Coming in February: We compare and analyze the Top Main Reasons for listening. How are Hybrid and Teaching listeners different in why they listen?

Hybrid

Rank/Denomination % of Hybrid Respondents
1. Baptist 35%
2. Non-denominational/Bible/Community Church 30%
3. Pentecostal 7%
4. Presbyterian 7%
5. Reformed 6%

Teaching

Rank/Denomination % of Teaching Respondents
1. Baptist 45%
2. Non-denominational/Bible/Community Church 33%
3. Pentecostal 7%
4. Methodist 4%
5. Lutheran 4%

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen®  Survey includes almost 12,000 Christian radio listeners nationwide—almost 3,000 each from Teaching & Music (Hybrid) stations and 3,000 from Teaching stations and programs. And I’ll bet the denominations they identify with don’t surprise you. The top Five are dominated with Evangelical Protestant denominations (both formats show about 80% from Evangelical Protestant respondents).

What might surprise you is how different this top Five is from the actual denominational composition of the United States. According to the PEW RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE STUDY from 2023-2024, 62 percent of Americans identify as Christian. Of that 62 percent, here are the Top Five Denominations:

Rank/Denomination % of the US Population
1. Evangelical Protestant 37%
2. Catholic 31%
3. Mainline Protestant 18%
4. Historically Black Protestant 8%
5. Latter Day Saint (Mormon) 3%

Geography makes a huge difference in these nationwide population numbers (for example, Christians in Dallas-Fort Worth are 44 percent Evangelical Protestant vs. Chicago’s 17 percent), but it appears that there could be opportunity to help our stations and programs reach beyond the Evangelical Protestant core.

What are the ways, without compromising the bold Biblical message, that we might attract listeners from other Christian denominations to worship God through our stations the other six days of the week?

Coming in January: From the 2025 Why Listen Survey , The Top Five Marital Statuses represented among the respondents. Hint: Not all of your listeners are married!

Hybrid

Rank/Motivation for Giving % Very Important
  1. You believe in the mission and vision of the ministry
 85%
2. Feeling called by God to give 84%
3. Knowing God tells us to support those who minister to us 67%
4. An emergency need at the ministry 36%
5. A story about someone’s life that was changed through the ministry 32%

Teaching

Rank/Motivation for Giving % Very Important
1. You believe in the mission and vision of the ministry 85%
2. Feeling called by God to give 83%
3. Knowing God tells us to support those who minister to us 63%
4. A story about someone’s life that was changed through the ministry 27%
5. An emergency need at the ministry 27%

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® Survey, which included almost 12,000 Christian radio listeners nationwide—almost 3,000 from Music and Teaching (Hybrid stations) and over 3,000 from all-Teaching stations and programs—reveals clear motivations for respondents’ giving to your radio ministry.

Among those who indicated recent giving, we asked this question: While there are many general reasons for donating to a radio ministry, there are often special circumstances that move you from just thinking about giving to actually making a call, going online, or writing a check to make a gift. Thinking of the last few times you made a gift, how important were each of the following in inspiring your decision to donate?

You can see their answers above. Both of the top two answers are a call to communication clarity. Are you clear (obvious, concise and often) about your mission and vision in ways your listener can relate to? If you were a brand new to Christian radio (and the faith), would you understand and be motivated by the words you’re using? This often means listening to listeners about why they give and then incorporating those words into your appeals.

Listener stories (no.4 or no.5 on the lists above) are an excellent way of communicating the emotions from the top three responses. Do you have ways of capturing those stories, editing them to a snack-sized length and airing/re-airing them?

Coming in January: From the 2025 Why Listen Survey 2025, The Top Five Denominations represented among Hybrid and Teaching the respondents. Get ready to hear about an opportunity to grow your audience.

Hybrid

On-Air Topic

% Very Interested
1. A word from Scripture and how it might apply to your life today 87%
2. Bible studies on topics such as prophecy, spiritual gifts, and marriage 58%
3. A series on an entire book of the Bible 58%
4. Three ways to improve your marriage or other relationships 35%
5. Information on a local Christian concert 26%

Teaching

On-Air Topic

% Very Interested
1. A word from Scripture and how it might apply to your life today 89%
2. Bible studies on topics such as prophecy, spiritual gifts, and marriage 76%
3. A series on an entire book of the Bible 73%
4. Three ways to improve your marriage or other relationships 40%
5. Regular news updates 33%

The 2025 Finney Media Why Listen® 2025 Survey reveals clear priorities among Hybrid and Teaching audiences regarding on-air content. The survey conducted earlier this year included almost 12,000 Christian radio listeners nationwide, of whom almost 3,000 were Music & Teaching (Hybrid) stations and over 3,000 were Teaching stations and programs.

Leading by a wide margin, A word from Scripture and how it might apply to your life today demonstrates that spiritual growth is the heart of Hybrid and Teaching radio. Listeners are tuning in for messages that connect biblical truth to daily living, affirming your role as a spiritual companion.

At no. 2 for each format, Bible Study echoes what we heard at no. 1. We see the same things with the no. 3 topic, studying an entire book of the Bible.

We have to go all the way to topic no. 4 to find ways to improve your marriage and topic no. 5, either Christian concerts or news as the first topics aren’t specifically about the Bible.

Almost like your listeners are saying, “Please give me more Jesus, more Bible,” and reduce everything else.

Coming in December: From the 2025 Why Listen Survey, The Top Five Motivations for Giving to your ministry, directly from your donors.

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© FINNEY MEDIA 2026

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