nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for thursday, may 31, 2012)

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

CBS (7.41 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) proved to be the network to beat on Thursday despite its all-repeat lineup of "The Big Bang Theory" (8.70 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.3, #1), "Rules of Engagement" (6.54 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.8, #2), "Person of Interest" (7.39 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T5) and "The Mentalist" (7.23 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T7).

ABC (5.88 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.5, #2) then had to settle for second place with week two of "Duets" (5.89 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T3) and "Rookie Blue" (5.84 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T5).

Next up was FOX (4.65 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3) with a special "Touch" (4.61 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T7) followed by the season finale of "Touch" (4.69 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T7).

Meanwhile, NBC (3.71 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.2, #4) offered up encores of "The Office" (2.36 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T11), another "The Office" (2.19 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T11), "America's Got Talent" (3.90 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #10) and another "America's Got Talent" (4.95 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T3).

And finally, the debut of "Breaking Pointe" (0.96 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #13) and a repeat of "The Catalina" (0.47 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.2, #14) on The CW (0.71 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "Pointe" posted a 0.5 rating while "Catalina" delivered a 0.3 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - Rookie Blue
-11.76% - Duets
-27.78% - Touch (vs. 5/17/12)

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
-7.14% - Touch - 9:00 (vs. Glee (Repeat))
-25.00% - Breaking Pointe (vs. The Vampire Diaries (Repeat))
-53.57% - Touch - 8:00 (vs. So You Think You Can Dance 8)
-61.34% - Duets (vs. Jimmy Kimmel: Game Night/NBA Countdown/NBA Finals, Game 2)
-74.55% - Rookie Blue (vs. NBA Finals, Game 2)

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," 2.3/6 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.1/5 with an encore; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.2/8; 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," 0.7/5 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.5/2 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" (1.0/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.4/3 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 0.7/3 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 16 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (6/2/11):

ABC (10.96 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.4, #1) coasted to victory on Thursday with its coverage of the "NBA Finals, Game 2" (13.13 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.5, #1). Kicking off the evening were the pre-game specials "Jimmy Kimmel: Game Night" (6.17 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T5) and "NBA Countdown" (7.10 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.6, #3).

FOX (5.98 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.1, #2) then got bumped to second place with a new "So You Think You Can Dance" (7.74 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.8, #2) and a repeat of "Glee" (4.23 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.4, #9).

Next up was CBS (7.93 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.8, #3) with its all-repeat mix of "The Big Bang Theory" (7.36 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.0, #4), "Rules of Engagement" (6.70 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T5), "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (7.98 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.7, #7) and "The Mentalist" (8.79 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #8).

Meanwhile, NBC (2.56 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up encores of "Community" (2.59 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T13), "30 Rock" (2.31 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T13), "The Office" (2.89 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.3, #10) and "Parks & Recreation" (2.52 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.1, #11) alongside the debut of "Love Bites" (2.53 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #12).

And finally, repeats of "The Vampire Diaries" (1.04 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.4, #15) and "Nikita" (1.02 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.3, #16) on The CW (1.03 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #5) closed out the night.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): So You Think You Can Dance (-12.50%).

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," 2.5/6 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.4/6 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," 0.8/4 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.6/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households with an encore) tied CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.2/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-49 with an encore) topped "Late Late Show" (0.3/2).

At 1:35 a.m., Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.7/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.3/2 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Source: Nielsen Media Research