A new scientific study claims to have identified which popular radio and podcast hosts are most likely to distract a driver when listening behind the wheel.
And it’s not good news if you listen to Heart Radio or Virgin Radio’s breakfast show on a Saturday afternoon.
That’s because former Only Way is Essex star turned DJ Mark Wright and ex Big Breakfast presenter Chris Evans have been named as the most likely hosts to put you off while driving.
Tune in or turn off? A new study claims to have used science to determine who are the most distracting radio and podcast hosts to listen to while driving
The rankings were determined based on a survey conducted by Scrap car comparison based on the scientific theories of voice psychology.
It analyzed the voices of 61 of the top radio and podcast hosts to rank them in order of derivation.
It used literature on the psychology of voices as the basis for the study, with 18 different researchers analyzing the acoustic measurements of different hosts’ voices, including: the speaker’s pitch (how high or low his voice sounds), speaking rate (how fast someone talks) and how many fillers they use (‘um’s’ and ‘ah’s).
As part of the survey, participants also provided ratings on how distracting and annoying they found each host. These average ratings were combined with the acoustic measures to obtain an overall distraction rating of 100.
And it’s reality TV star Mark Wright, who presents Heart Radio’s Saturday program between 4pm and 7pm, who topped the rankings.
Wright achieved an overall distraction rate of 84 percent, scoring highly on both acoustic measures and listener ratings.
Virgin Radio’s Chris Evans was deemed the most distracting, also with a score of 84 percent.
Mark Wright, who has a spot on Heart Radio on Saturdays between 4pm and 7pm, is tied for first place as the most distracting radio or podcast presenter to listen to while behind the wheel in a survey
Chris Evans, who fronts the Chris Evans Breakfast Show on Virgin Radio on weekday mornings, was ranked alongside Wright as the most distracting DJ behind the wheel
American broadcaster Howard Stern rounded out the top three in terms of most distracting radio and podcast hosts
Howard Stern, American broadcaster and media personality, known for his self-titled radio program ‘The Howard Stern Show’, was in third place, with a score of 75 percent, while English radio host Sonny Jay (Capital UK) and podcaster and ex Made in Chelsea star Spencer Matthews (Big Fish podcast) rounded out the top five, each with a distraction score of 72 percent.
Some of Britain’s most popular personalities and presenters, including James Acaster, Greg James and Rylan Clark, also feature in the top ten, thanks to high scores on acoustic measures of pitch, speaker speed and fillers, combined with listener ratings of how their voice is distracting.
As well as looking at the most distracting voices, the research also found the voices of popular presenters least likely to distract people on the road – and some of the world’s most recognized podcasters, including Jay Shetty (On Purpose podcast) and Mel Robbins (The Mel Robbins Podcast) ranked in the top three.
Radio and podcast presenter and star Jordan North, who will take over as presenter of Capital Breakfast this month after leaving BBC Radio One, is fifth least distracting presenter, scoring a low 30 per cent.
North was followed by American radio personality and comedian Adam Carolla, host of The Adam Carolla Show, who also scored a favorable 30 percent.
The top ten was completed by much-loved Irish TV and radio presenter Graham Norton and ex-radio presenter and podcaster Fearne Cotton, who presents the hugely popular wellness podcast Happy Place.
US research shows radio still dominates in-car listening, but streaming and podcasts are starting to catch up
Despite the growing popularity of streaming services and the introduction of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which allow drivers to use music applications, the car is still the only place where radio still predominates, research shows.
According to Edison Research, 73 percent of American drivers listen to the radio while in their car, making it the No. 1 audio source on American roads.
David Kottaun, operations manager at Comparison of scrap carssays listening to the wrong radio station or podcast while driving “could jeopardize your safety on the road.”
“Millions of us around the world will be turning to our favorite podcasts and radio show hosts for company, looking for something to keep us entertained while stuck in traffic or on a long drive,” David explained.
‘However, it is clear that listening to popular presenters may be too distracting for some motorists and could compromise their safety on the road.’
He added: ‘After statistically analyzing the survey results, our research found that voices rated as annoying and distracting were highly correlated with each other, meaning annoying voices were also perceived as distracting – proving that If you have a problem with a particular radio or podcast host, you may want to consider switching to another station.
‘This research has provided some insight into the types of voices that can distract drivers on the road, but more extensive research would need to be done to provide conclusive findings on what exactly makes a voice annoying or distracting.’
Do you agree (or disagree) with the results of this one study? Let us know which radio or podcast host you think is the most distracting in the comments below.
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