nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, may 29, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

NBC (7.46 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.3, #1) took home the demo crown on Tuesday with a new "America's Got Talent" (11.30 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.7, #1). Said hour was bookended by repeats of "America's Got Talent" (7.25 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.0, #2) and "Grimm" (3.84 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T5).

CBS (7.59 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) then claimed the silver with repeats of "NCIS" (10.04 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T3), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (6.77 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T5) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.98 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T3).

Next up was ABC (5.74 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3) with the season finale of the TBS-bound "Cougar Town" (3.50 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.2, #8) followed by the two-hour special "20/20: The Real Queen: By Her Own Royal Family with Katie Couric" (6.86 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T5).

Meanwhile, FOX (2.27 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up a full night of repeats with "New Girl" (2.41 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9), another "New Girl" (2.22 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9), yet another "New Girl" (2.19 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9) and even more "New Girl" (2.25 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9).

And finally, the premiere of "The Catalina" (0.99 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13) and the finale of "The L.A. Complex" (0.63 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13) on The CW (0.81 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "Catalina" delivered a 0.5 rating while "Complex" posted a 0.4 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+50.00% - The L.A. Complex
+20.00% - Cougar Town (vs. 5/15/12)
+15.63% - America's Got Talent

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - The L.A. Complex (vs. Hellcats (Repeat))
-11.90% - America's Got Talent
-25.00% - The Catalina (vs. One Tree Hill (Repeat))
-52.00% - Cougar Town (vs. Jimmy Kimmel Live: Game Night/NBA Countdown)
-76.36% - 20/20: The Real Queen: By Her Own Royal Family with Katie Couric (vs. NBA Finals, Game 1)

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," 2.2/5 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.2/5 with an encore; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.1/7; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.5/4 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.6/3 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.6/3 with an encore; "Nightline," 1.0/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households with an encore) beat CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.1/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-49 with an encore) topped "Late Late Show" (0.4/2).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households and a 0.3/2 in adults 18-49 with an encore in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Here are the highlights of the 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (5/31/11):

ABC (10.77 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.5, #1) narrowly took home top demo honors on Tuesday with its mix of "Jimmy Kimmel Live: Game Night" (6.30 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.2, #5), "NBA Countdown" (6.93 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.8, #4) and the "NBA Finals, Game 1" (12.84 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 5.5, #1).

NBC (14.77 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.4, #2) nevertheless was the most-watched network with the return of "America's Got Talent" (14.97 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.2, #3) and a new "The Voice" (14.38 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.9, #2).

Next up was CBS (9.04 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.4, #3) with its all-repeat lineup of "NCIS" (11.12 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.8, #6), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (9.86 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.6, #7) and "The Good Wife" (6.16 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #10).

Meanwhile, FOX (2.61 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up encores of "Glee" (2.81 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #8) and "Raising Hope" (2.57 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #9) as well as the final original "Traffic Light" (2.24 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.8, #11).

And finally, repeats of "One Tree Hill" (0.91 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.4, #12) and "Hellcats" (0.81 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #13) on The CW (0.86 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) rounded out the night.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): The Voice (28.90%), Traffic Light (-42.90% vs. 5/10/11).

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," 3.2/8 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.2/5 with an encore. ABC's "Nightline" and "Jimmy Kimmel Live" were delayed by an NBA overrun.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 1.2/5 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.5/2 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.6/5 in metered-market households with an encore) beat CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.1/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.7/4 in 18-49 with an encore) topped "Late Late Show" (0.3/2).

At 1:35 a.m., Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 1.0/4 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.5/4 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Source: Nielsen Media Research