nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, july 2, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

FOX (2.79 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #1) claimed top honors on the Saturday holiday with full hours of "Cops" (2.47 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) and another "Cops" (3.11 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1).

CBS (3.25 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) then was the most-watched network with a new "Chaos" (2.59 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) followed by repeats of "CSI: NY" (3.18 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "48 Hours Mystery" (3.98 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3).

Next up was NBC (2.48 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) with encores of "Minute to Win It" (2.05 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8), "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2.34 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) and "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (3.05 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4).

And finally, ABC (1.85 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) closed out the night with rebroadcasts of "101 Ways to Leave a Game Show" (2.07 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5), "Expedition Impossible" (1.69 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "Rookie Blue" (1.80 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8).

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live" (2.9/8 in metered-market households), hosted by Helen Mirren with musical guest Foo Fighters, dominated its time period.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.5 rating, 7 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox.

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (7/3/10):

FOX (3.13 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #1) was the top draw on an invisible Saturday evening with its mainstays "Cops" (2.98 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) and "America's Most Wanted" (3.29 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1).

The silver then went to NBC (3.10 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #2) with its all-repeat lineup of "America's Got Talent" (2.21 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.5, #9), another "America's Got Talent" (3.49 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.61 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1).

Next up was ABC (2.78 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #3) with a repeat of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (2.62 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T6) followed by a new "The Forgotten" (2.68 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T6) and the finale to "The Forgotten" (3.06 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #5).

And finally, the series finale of "Three Rivers" (2.55 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10) lead into the feature "Die Another Day" (2.84 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T6) on CBS (2.75 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4).

Source: Nielsen Media Research