It”s still all the talk

“Gossip Girl” was the can’t-miss show for CW, the fledgling network struggling to establish its own identity.

Yet the premiere Sept. 19 averaged 3.5 million viewers – modest even by the network’s low standards – and a million of them left the following week.

A total bust? Not quite. The soap about privileged Manhattan teenagers gained 20 percent among young adults who recorded it, then watched in the seven days after the first airing.

It’s a top-five network show among teenage girls, the top new show among all teens and the biggest seller on iTunes.

“Gossip Girl” also is blog heaven. The buzz factor grew when one of its young stars, Chace Crawford, was romantically linked to country star and former “American Idol” winner Carrie Underwood.

So, far from getting a quick hook, “Gossip Girl” was instead the first show of the new season to be extended to a full 22-episode order.

It’s a case in point of how Hollywood’s definition of a hit TV series is radically changing. Though still the primary focus, “live” TV ratings are no longer the sole barometer of success.

As viewing habits change, programmers are struggling with how to factor in DVR use, Web viewing, sought-after niche audiences and online chatter when weighing shows’ health.

“In the new world we live in, that kind of cultural permeation – the awareness that’s greater than the numbers indicate – speaks to the potential for growth of the show,” says “Gossip Girl” executive producer Josh Schwartz.

That was a factor in the surprise resurrection of the CBS drama “Jericho,” which was granted a seven-episode reprieve (due early next year).

In a campaign to save the show, dedicated fans sent cartons of nuts to network executives – who were nonetheless more impressed by the 5.3 million episodes that were streamed online.

In making decisions on which shows to renew or cancel, “you have to consider what’s on these other platforms,” says CBS Paramount Television chief Nancy Tellem. “We’re trying to reach as many viewers as we can, no matter how it comes in.”

Take NBC’s “The Office,” the Americanized version of the BBC hit, starring Steve Carell.

It was a sluggish starter in 2005 and a likely candidate for cancellation with just 5 million viewers. It won a second season – the lowest-rated show to do so – based on “pure passion,” says NBC Universal Television co-chairman Marc Graboff.

“We loved the show, it was inexpensive to produce, it had a certified movie star (‘The 40-Year-Old Virgin’ had just broken out), it was doing well on iTunes, it was getting a lot of critical acclaim, and frankly, we had nothing else to go on,” Graboff says.

“The Office” steadily grew into a young-adult magnet, won an Emmy as best comedy and is holding up against “CSI” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” One-fourth of its audience watches later on DVR, among the highest percentage of any series.

The splintering of the television audience, thanks to the growth in cable networks, has made hit shows smaller. Despite steady population growth, last season’s No. 1 drama, “CSI,” averaged fewer than 20 million viewers, while 10 years ago, top-rated “ER” drew more than 30 million.

And television isn’t the only screen for TV shows. Networks stream episodes on their own Web sites or elsewhere, such as NBC and Fox’s Hulu.com, due this month. They’re free, but include skip-proof ads.

Apple’s iTunes offers dozens of shows ad-free and iPod-ready but charges $1.99. Cell phone providers also offer selected episodes for viewing on-the-go.

“TV is not just watched on TV in the home anymore,” says Scott Springer of Nielsen Media Research. “We all recognize the old measures won’t be good in the future as (habits) shift.”