Ratings News - 16th December 2011 *Full Tables Added*

Metered Market Thursday Ratings Update
CBS Wins; Lackluster Katie Couric Special on ABC

Thursday 12/15/11

Household
Rating/Share
CBS 7.8/13
Fox 5.5/ 9
ABC 4.5/ 7
NBC 2.0/ 3
CW 0.7/ 1

-Percent Change from the Year-Ago Evening (Thursday 12/16/10):
Fox: +62, ABC: +36, CBS: +13, NBC: -20, CW: -46

----------

-Winners:
The Big Bang Theory R (CBS), The X Factor (Fox), Person of Interest (CBS), The Mentalist (CBS)

-Disappointing:
The Year With Katie Couric (ABC)

-Losers (excluding repeats):
Prime Suspect (NBC)

----------

-Ratings Breakdown:
CBS is the network to beat in the Thursday overnights, with a first-place finish in five of the six half-hours last night. Despite facing The X Factor on Fox (which will never reach the 20-million mark to Simon Cowell’s chagrin), an encore telecast of the Eye net’s The Big Bang Theory led the 8 p.m. time period with a 7.1 rating/12 share. Next was soon-to-depart Rules of Engagement (#2: 6.4/10 at 8:30 p.m.), which is a notable improvement over short-lived How to Be a Gentleman, followed by the compatible combination of dramas Person of Interest (#1: 8.5/14) and The Mentalist (#1: 8.3/14) from 9-11 p.m. Each week, Person of Interest inches closer to a likely second season renewal.

As a reminder, upcoming CBS Rob Schneider comedy Rob!, which features the former Saturday Night Live star as a lifelong bachelor who marries into a tight-knit Mexican-American family, opens on Thursday, Jan. 12 at 8:30 p.m. out of The Big Bang Theory.

Moving to Fox, aforementioned The X Factor, which announces the first season winner next Thursday, won the 8 p.m. hour overall with a 7.1/12 in the overnights. That led into a repeat of Bones at a third-place 4.0/ 7 at 9 p.m. Inheriting the Thursday 9 p.m. hour on Fox on Jan. 19 is Bones spin-off The Finder, which will focus on an outspoken former military man (Geoff Stults) who can find anyone.

Over at ABC, a repeat of annual holiday special A Charlie Brown Christmas finished third in the 8 p.m. hour, with a 4.1/ 7. That led into two-hour special, The Year With Katie Couric, at a disappointing 4.7/ 7 from 9-11 pm. Here is the half-hour breakdown:

The Year With Katie Couric (ABC)
9:00 p.m.: 4.8/ 8 (#2)
9:30 p.m.: 4.7/ 7 (#2)
10:00 p.m.: 4.7/ 8 (#2)
10:30 p.m.: 4.5/ 8 (#2)

Comparably, annual special Barbara Walters Presents the 10 Most Fascinating People one night earlier was considerably stronger at a 7.0/12 in the overnights from 9:30-11 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 14.

Elsewhere, repeats of NBC’s two-hour sitcom block -- Community (#4: 1.7/ 3), Parks and Recreation (#4: 1.5/ 2), The Office (#4: 1.8/ 3) and Whitney (#4: 1.6/ 3) -- led into an original installment of Prime Suspect, which earned its cancellation stripes at a 2.8/ 5 (#3) at 10 p.m. While you cannot judge a show by a repeat, the particularly lackluster NBC comedy encores is a testimonial to their potential lack of interest in off-network syndication. As a reminder, Thursday on NBC beginning on Jan. 12 will consist of the following:

8:00 p.m. 30 Rock (season premiere)
8:30 p.m. Parks and Recreation
9:00 p.m. The Office
9:30 p.m. Up All Night (new day and time)
10:00 p.m. The Firm (two-hour premiere on Sunday, Jan.

The CW capped off the evening with repeats of The Vampire Diaries (#5: 0.9/ 2) and The Secret Circle (#5: 0.6/ 1).

Source: Nielsen Media Research data

Source: Marc Berman@TVMediaInsights