Mention Pandora to some longtime radio people and you’re liable to get a visceral reaction, in some cases a from-the-gut attack on the internet-based radio service, which now claims in excess of 40 million registered listeners.

And for sure, services like Pandora and for that matter satellite radio are a worry for traditional over-the-air radio people, particularly as more and more consumers bring them into their cars.

But in reality neither internet nor satellite radio represents a major threat to traditional radio, certainly at this stage, in the view of media of planners.

That’s the upshot of a Media Life survey of readers that was posted last week.

Asked how serious a threat they thought those services were to traditional radio, more than four fifths of respondents agreed it was limited or nonexistent.

Just 16 percent saw them as a major threat, agreeing with this statement: “A huge threat as they move into cars and consumers choose them over local radio stations while commuting.”

The largest share, 58 percent, saw the threat as limited, agreeing with this statement: “These services will skim off some traditional listeners but their appeal is limited.”

And the remaining 26 percent saw no threat, agreeing with this statement: “Those people inclined to listen to them have already switched over.”

Still, more media people than not believe these other services have already had an impact on traditional radio. The question: What impact have new media such as satellite radio, HD radio and internet radio had on the medium?

Nearly 39 percent thought there’d been little impact to date. They agreed with this statement: “They are still dominated by early adopters, and they are too expensive or too narrowly targeted to move into the mainstream anytime soon.”

But a larger share, 50 percent, believed their impact was growing, agreeing with this statement: “Internet radio is becoming more popular, and satellite and HD, while still small, have very devoted audiences. We can learn from these approaches.”

And the remaining 11 percent believed their impact was already substantial, agreeing with this statement: “They are forcing terrestrial stations to become more innovative, and it's about time.”

Media Life readers believed that one area of these newer radio services has cooled considerably, and that’s in the person of Howard Stern.

Asked whether Stern would remain on satellite with his contract running out, more than two thirds, 67 percent, said they didn’t care one way or the other. They agreed with this statement: “He's no longer the King of All Media.”

Of the remainder, 18 percent thought he would stay, with 15 percent believing he would leave.

That was consistent with responses to another question on radio personalities. Media Life asked readers who were the most interesting personalities on radio, and Stern was not the top choice, getting just 11 percent of the vote.

The top choice, as one might expect, was Rush Limbaugh but not by a huge margin at just under 14 percent. Glenn Beck was No. 2 at 12 percent. The rest of the votes were divided among a slew of other personalities.

Asked what areas of radio readers would most like to see increased coverage on by Media Life, their first choice was measurement at 33 percent of respondents.

Next came radio genres at 22 percent. Internet radio was third a 10 percent. The remainder were divided among a whole range of topics, from sports radio to syndicated radio to ethnic radio.

Measurement continues to be a key issue among media people with the ongoing rollout of Arbitron’s portable people meter, which already has had a major impact on the buying process.

Media people have long been supporters of the PPM because of what they see as its superiority over the old diary system, but they clearly think Arbitron has more work to do on the technology.

Asked how they rated the PPM versus the old diary system, 64 percent agreed with this statement: “Better but it still has a ways to go.”

Just under 19 percent thought it was vastly better, while 8 percent thought it was somewhat better.

Nearly 7 percent thought it was no better, and 3 percent thought it was worse.

Finally, Media Life asked, "What do you believe is the most important issue concerning listener involvement for media planners/buyers?"

Readers were invited to write in a response, and the majority voiced concerns about the PPM and other more general ratings concerns.

"The PPM switch from diary ratings is the current topic," one reader writes. "However, there should be a larger survey base so that media buyers and clients can use more accurate survey information for ZIP Code and demographic analysis."

Others said that interactivity, radio web site integration and blending traditional radio with digital and high-def options were top priorities.

Sums up one reader, "Lots of things go into listener involvement -- genre, commercial vs. music/programming ratio, where they are listening to the radio, TSL, etc."