TV Ratings: Steady ‘X Factor,’ solid ‘Person of Interest’ launch let CBS, FOX split Thursday

Fast National ratings for Thursday, September 22, 2011.

After a somewhat disappointing premiere night, FOX’s “The X Factor” delivered nearly identical ratings in its second night, an encouraging sign and the lynchpin for the network’s Thursday win among young viewers. Meanwhile, CBS got great numbers for “The Big Bang Theory,” steady numbers for “The Mentalist” and an OK premiere from “Person of Interest” to take the night overall.

In other Thursday snippets, NBC has to be pleased with the premiere numbers for “Whitney,” but very disappointed with the early returns for “Prime Suspect.” And although “Charlie’s Angels” didn’t debut big for ABC, the network can take solace in the lack of a big half-hour drop, which is saying something for a critically reviled drama.

Let’s look at the numbers…

Among adults 18-49, FOX averaged a 4.1 rating for the night, tops in the key demographic. CBS’s 3.6 rating and the 3.4 rating for ABC were close behind. NBC was fourth with a 2.4 rating, far ahead of the 1.0 rating for The CW.

Overall, though, CBS averaged an estimated 13.64 million viewers and an 8.4 rating/13 share, easily beating the 7.3/11 and 12.07 million viewers for FOX. ABC’s 6.6/10 and 9.79 million viewers finished third, with NBC’s 3.6/6 and 5.74 million viewers coming in fourth. The CW drew 2.27 million viewers and a 1.5/2 for the night.

[For the night, Univision averaged 3.58 million viewers and a 1.6 rating among adults 18-49.]

8 p.m. – Two episodes of “The Big Bang Theory” averaged a strong 14.35 million viewers and a 4.9 rating among adults 18-49 to dominating the 8 p.m. hour for CBS. FOX’s “The X Factor” was second with 11.425 million viewers and a 3.9 key demo rating. While ABC’s “Charlie’s Angels” only averaged 8.74 million viewers and a 2.1 key demo rating (better than “My Generation,” but far worse than “FlashForward” in the troubling time slot),  only a few viewers checked out at the half-hour and the demo rating actually went up by a whopping 0.1. NBC’s “Community” (3.98 million viewers and a 1.7 key demo rating) and “Parks and Recreation” (4.11 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo rating) played to their normal niches. On The CW, “The Vampire Diaries” took a dip from its premiere, but still averaged 2.49 million viewers and a 1.2 key demo rating.

9 p.m. – The heavily promoted premiere of “Person of Interest” drew 13.22 million viewers and a 3.1 key demo rating for CBS in the 9 p.m. hour, though the new drama took a big drop from its demo lead-in (coming in fourth for the hour) and also fell at the half-hour. FOX’s “The X Factor” improved to 12.71 million viewers and a 4.4 rating among adults 18-49, which won the hour. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” averaged 10.11 million viewers and a 3.9 key demo rating in third overall and second in the demo. On NBC, “The Office” (7.63 million viewers and a  3.9 key demo rating) and “Whitney” (6.71 million viewers and a 3.2 key demo rating) were fourth overall and third in the demo. The CW’s “The Secret Circle” fell to 2.045 million viewers and a 0.9 demo rating off of its strong premiere, shedding viewers (but not young viewers) at the half-hour.

10 p.m. – CBS’ “The Mentalist” closed primetime with an overall win, averaging 13.36 million viewers and coming in second with a 2.8 rating among adults 18-49. The second hour of “Grey’s Anatomy” improved to 10.525 million viewers and a 4.2 key demo rating. On NBC, “Prime Suspect” averaged just under 6 million viewers and a 1.8 key demo rating, falling at the half-hour in both measures.