Thursday’s Highlights

SERIES

American Idol: Last season’s champ Kris Allen returns to perform on a new episode of the talent competition (8 p.m. Fox).

SoCal Connected: A new edition of the newsmagazine profiles a former insurance broker who contracted cancer but was then denied medical coverage (8 p.m. KCET).

Behind Bars: This new documentary series about America’s jails debuts with three back-to-back episodes (8, 9 and 10 p.m. Discovery).

Kitchen Nightmares: Chef Gordon Ramsay works his makeover magic on a Cuban restaurant in Brooklyn, N.Y., in this new episode (9 p.m. Fox).

Soundstage: Country music legend Willie Nelson is featured on a new edition of the concert series (10 p.m. KCET).

Burn Notice: “24’s” Carlos Bernard guest stars on a new episode of the spy drama (10 p.m. USA).

The Sarah Silverman Program: Our heroine launches a write-in campaign for a fake mayoral candidate with a gag name in this new episode (10:30 p.m. Comedy Central).

SPECIALS

Scarred Justice: The Orangeburg Massacre 1968: Events surrounding the shooting of three black students by police at South Carolina State College are recalled in this documentary (9 p.m. KCET).

MOVIES

Hotel Rwanda: Don Cheadle stars in this fact-based 2004 drama about one man’s efforts to save lives during the Rwandan genocide (8 p.m. MyNet).

The Dirty Dozen: Lee Marvin heads an all-star cast in this classic 1967 WWII action tale (9:15 p.m. TCM).

SPORTS

Winter Olympics: Women’s curling (9 a.m. USA); women’s hockey (11 a.m. and 3 p.m. MSNBC); men’s curling (2 p.m. CNBC); women’s cross-country skiing (3 p.m. NBC); ladies figure skating, men’s skiing (8 p.m. NBC).

Pro basketball: The Cavaliers challenge the Celtics (5 p.m. TNT) and the Nuggets take on the Warriors (7:30 p.m. TNT).

College basketball: The Bruins host Oregon State (8 p.m. FS Prime).