text: Series renewal, 2010 Questions about the series' continued viability began before the third season aired. Just hours before the third-season premiere, when asked whether NBC suddenly moving Jay Leno out of primetime lowered the bar for Chuck, NBC chairman Jeff Gaspin replied, "I wouldn't say the bar's lower, but we obviously have less choice at the moment, so he's got a better shot."
  When asked about the series' chances of being renewed for a fourth season and whether fans would have to step in again, Angela Bromstad replied, "Well, it's got to maintain, and it depends on development," but said that the show is a "pleasant surprise, and they're doing great work."
  The ratings for Chuck slipped, falling to a series-low 1.9 demo for two weeks running as of the 11th episode of the season, "Chuck Versus the Final Exam."  The "TV By The Numbers" website reported on March 23, 2010, that this was "below the ratings level that would indicate likely renewal" despite the overall ratings difficulties that NBC was facing. However, on March 30, 2010, the season's 12th episode, "Chuck Versus the American Hero" saw an increase to a 2.1 share and a 0.2 million viewer rise.Chuck was also a contestant in E!'s online Save One Show contest for the second year running, where it won with 52% of the vote. The runner up was One Tree Hill, which garnered 20% of the vote.