What is the typical viewer of "Three Rivers" like?

I came across a Google Alert today that I not only found very interesting but somewhat surprising. Someone had posted on a forum that they had the first six episodes of "Three Rivers" on their DVR, not seen yet, and asking for what people thought about the show and if they should bother to watch it.

I know why I first started to watch Three Rivers: I'm an Alex O'Loughlin fan; I'd watch him read the phone book. Of course I know in the organ donation community there was a vested interest in the show to get the message out there and to do well, to bring public awareness for a growing need for people to sign up to become organ donors and to educate the public about the myths and facts surrounding donating your organs. Two different, distinct viewers, both wanting the show to succeed but for obviously different reasons.

This forum post made me think about the other viewer. The viewer that Three Rivers' needs to succeed enough to stay on the air. That elusive viewer that doesn't have a vested interest in the show. Now that most of us have settled into our regular viewing schedule, how does a random viewer stumble upon the show? Is there such a thing as a random viewer? I know my TV habits, I find the shows I like and stick with them. I don't think I have ever just "found" something to watch. Are the majority of TV watchers like me, or are there still channel surfers?

Getting back to the forum poster's question and the answers they received, and if I take out the obvious Alex lover and the obvious Alex hater posts (one of each canceled each other out) the answer became clear. Although most were interested enough in the show to watch, they were not invested enough to "bother" with time over-runs. Either they didn't want to wait for the show to start, couldn't extend their DVR timers to allow for the over-runs due to scheduling conflicts with another show, or didn't want to stay up that late on a Sunday night.

In conclusion, my hope is that CBS is aware that without a regular schedule, trying to attract new viewers, the typical casual viewer, is an uphill battle. Hopefully CBS will give the show enough of a chance to find new viewers by keeping the show on long enough to see that it can perform, over and above its core audience, once the sporting events stop changing the start time of the show.