'Jersey Shore' Ratings Improve in Week 3

Days after Abercrombie & Fitch said it was willing to pay Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino not to wear its clothing, the series drew 7.8 million viewers.

4:23 PM PDT 8/19/2011 by Philiana Ng

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MTV

"Jersey Shore"

Jersey Shore continues to own Thursday nights.

For its third episode, the MTV juggernaut increased 5 percent in total tune-in, drawing 7.8 million total viewers at 10 p.m. days after Abercrombie & Fitch said that it was willing to pay Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino not to wear the company's clothing. (The previous episode averaged 7.4 million viewers.)

That wasn't enough, however, to top the night's No. 1 non-related sports program, CBS' Big Brother, which averaged 8 million viewers at 9 p.m.

"We are deeply concerned that Mr. Sorrentino's association with our brand could cause significant damage to our image," Abercrombie & Fitch said in a statement earlier in the week.

In MTV's key persons 12-34 demographic, Jersey Shore was the top-rated program for the third straight week, snagging a 7.3 rating (or 5.7 million) -- a 3 percent increase from the previous week.

Thursday's episode -- which showcased hook-up drama between Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Sorrentino -- was one of the franchise's 10 most-watched telecasts, behind six third season episodes and the Season 4 opener.