"American Idol" continued to slip Thursday night after dropping with its season premiere Wednesday night, while NBC's new drama "The Firm" continued its slide, according to preliminary numbers.
Fox's "American Idol," which Wednesday night premiered to a 24 percent decline versus last season's premiere, dropped off another 19 percent with Thursday's installment, clocking a 5.7/15 in the adults 18-49 demographic and receiving 14 million total viewers. That was similar to the percentage dip that the show experienced between last season's first and second night. "Idol" was still the night's top-rated program, and pushed Fox to a ratings win with an average 3.9/10 in the demo. It also boosted "The Finder" at 9 p.m., which grew 29 percent from last week's premiere with a 2.2/5 in the demo and 6.7 million total viewers.
CBS took the second-highest ratings of the week with "The Big Bang Theory" at 8, which scored a 5.3/15 in the demo and 15.7 million total viewers. "Rob" at 8:30 dropped 12 percent from its strong premiere last week, hitting a 3.6/9 in the demo and drawing 11.7 million total viewers. "Person of Interest" at 9 received a 3.3/8 in the demo and 14.3 million total viewers, while "The Mentalist" the following hour drew a 2.9/8 and 14 million total viewers. The network took most-watched status for the night with an average 14 million total viewers.
At NBC, "30 Rock" at 8 fell 11 percent from last week's season premiere to a series low of 1.6/4 in the demo, and 4 million total viewers. "Parks & Recreation" at 8:30 increased slightly for a 2.0/5 in the demo and 4.3 million total viewers, while "The Office" ran flat with last week for a 2.9/7 in the demo and 5.9 million total viewers. "Up All Night" followed at 9:30, posting a 1.9/5 in the demo and 4 million total viewers. The night closed with "The Firm" at 10, which dropped 10 percent compared to last week with a 0.9/2 in the demo and 3.4 million total viewers.
ABC's night began on a down note, with "Wipeout" at 8 dropping 18 percent for a 1.8/5 and 5.8 million total viewers. "Grey's Anatomy" the following hour was also down, slipping 11 percent for a 3.4/8 and 9.3 million total viewers. "Private Practice" ended the evening with a 2.1/5 in the demo and 6 million total viewers.
