Nellie Andreeva

Snooki and Jwoww ShowThe Jersey Shore franchise is validating the old adage that “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” The second spinoff from the blockbuster reality series, Snooki & JWoww, drew 2.4 million viewers in its debut last night. That was a third of the audience that tuned in for the most recent Jersey Shore season premiere. Snooki & JWoww also debuted lower that the first Jersey Shore spinoff, The Pauly D Project, which opened with 2.9 million viewers in March, a sign that the multiple spinoffs are likely diluting the franchise. Overall, 2.4 million is an OK number, on par with MTV’s reality staple Teen Mom, but given Snooki’s status of a pop culture and tabloid fixture, the premiere probably should’ve done better. In its defense, Snooki & JWoww had the tentpole 10 PM position while Pauly D aired at 10:30 behind Punk’d. Among persons 12-34, Snooki & JWoww averaged a 2.1 rating to rank as Thursday’s No. 1 original series of the day in the demo. Starting next week, the reality comedy will be used as a lead-in for the second season of scripted comedy Awkward.

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