nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, march 29, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

ABC (15.11 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.3, #1) was back in the ratings hunt on Tuesday thanks to the special "Dancing With the Stars: The Story So Far" (12.67 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.7, #6) followed by a new "Dancing With the Stars" (18.81 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.2, #1) and the premiere of "Body of Proof" (13.85 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.0, #4).

CBS (14.48 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #2) then was bumped to second place with new episodes of "NCIS" (18.26 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.8, #2), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (15.21 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.5, #3) and "The Good Wife" (9.99 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T7), the latter of which hit a series low.

Next up was NBC (6.34 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.3, #3) with new episodes of "The Biggest Loser" (7.13 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.6, #5) and "Parenthood" (4.77 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T7).

Meanwhile, FOX (3.75 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.3, #4) offered up repeats of "Glee" (4.41 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.4, #9) and "Raising Hope" (3.60 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.3, #10) followed by a new "Traffic Light" (2.60 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.1, #11).

And finally, repeats of "One Tree Hill" (0.82 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T12) and "Hellcats" (0.70 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T12) on The CW (0.76 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): NCIS: Los Angeles (9.40%), Parenthood (0.00% vs. 3/1/11), Traffic Light (0.00%), NCIS (0.00%), The Good Wife (-9.50%), The Biggest Loser (-13.30%).

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

In Nielsen's 56 metered markets, household results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 2.6/6; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.8/7; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.9/9; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 2.1/6.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 1.0/4; "Late Show," 0.7/3; "Nightline," 1.4/5; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.8/4.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households) trailed CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.4/5). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.6/3 in 18-49) topped "Late Late Show" (0.5/3).

At 1:35 a.m., Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.7/3 in metered-market households and a 0.4/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (3/30/10):

FOX (21.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.5, #1) overshadowed the competition on Tuesday thanks to a two-hour "American Idol" (21.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.5, #1).

A distant second place then went to ABC (10.48 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.3, #2) with new episodes of "Dancing With the Stars" (14.09 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.9, #4), "Lost" (10.06 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 4.0, #2) and the return of "V" (7.29 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 3.0, #3).

Next up was NBC (7.00 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.7, #3) with new episodes of "The Biggest Loser" (7.36 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.8, #5) and "Parenthood" (6.27 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.5, #6).

Meanwhile, CBS (9.64 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #4) offered up its all-repeat lineup of "NCIS" (10.69 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.1, #7), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (10.15 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.0, #8) and "The Good Wife" (8.07 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.5, #9).

And finally, new episodes of "90210" (1.51 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.8, #10) and "Melrose Place" (1.06 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.6, #11) on The CW (1.29 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #5) rounded out the night.

Source: Nielsen Media Research