TV Ratings: 'Big Brother' keeps CBS on top on Thursday

'Wipeout' wins the 8 p.m. hour for ABC

By Daniel Fienberg Friday, Jul 29, 2011 12:10 PM

Thursday's 'Big Brother'

Credit: CBS

Fast National ratings for Thursday, July 28, 2011.

Thursday night's "Big Brother" eviction telecast was the evening's most watched program both overall and among young viewers, leading the network to comfortable ratings wins.

Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 1.9 rating, topping ABC's 1.6 rating in the key demographic. FOX was third with a 1.3 key demo rating. NBC averaged a 0.8 rating, while The CW averaged a 0.4 rating.

Overall, CBS averaged an estimated 6.495 million viewers and a 4.1 rating/7 share. ABC's 3.3/6 and 5.51 million viewers followed in second, with FOX's 2.8/5 and 4.38 million viewers good for third. NBC averaged a 1.8/3 and 2.57 million viewers, while The CW averaged 951,000 and a 0.7/1.

8 p.m. - ABC's "Wipeout" started primetime in first with 6.63 million viewers and a 1.9 rating among adults 18-49 in the 8 p.m. hour. CBS' "The Big Bang Theory" and "Rules of Engagement" finished second with 6.385 million viewers. FOX's "So You Think You Can Dance" averaged 5.29 million viewers and a 1.7 demo rating, third in both counts. NBC's "Community" and "Parks and Recreation" averaged 2.125 million viewers, with The CW's "The Vampire Diaries" averaging 1.11 million viewers.

9 p.m. - CBS took over first in the 9 p.m. hour with 6.98 million viewers and a 2.6 rating among adults 18-49 for "Big Brother." ABC was second with 5.015 million viewers and 1.6 demo rating for "Expedition Impossible." FOX's "Glee" averaged 3.47 million viewers, beating the 2.2 million viewers for NBC's "The Office" and "30 Rock." On The CW, "Plain Jane" averaged 789,000 viewers.

10 p.m. - "The Mentalist" averaged 6.12 million viewers to top the 10 p.m. hour overall for CBS. ABC's "Rookie Blue" averaged 4.875 million viewers for second and won the hour among adults 18-49 with a 1.3 rating. NBC's "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" averaged 3.32 million viewers.

All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.

Daniel Fienberg
Executive Editor

A long-time member of the TCA Board and a longer-time blogger of "American Idol," Dan Fienberg writes about TV, except for when he writes about movies or sometimes writes about the Red Sox. But never music. He would sound stupid talking about music.