nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, june 16, 2012)

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

NBC (6.07 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.5, #1) topped the charts with its nearly full night coverage of "U.S. Open Golf" (6.82 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) followed by a repeat of "Betty White's Off Their Rockers" (2.33 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T4).

A distant second place then went to ABC (3.03 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) with its presentation of "Cars" (3.03 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2).

Next up was FOX (3.04 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #3) with its "Saturday Baseball Game of the Week" (3.04 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T4).

And finally, CBS (3.09 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) closed out the night with its mix of "Rules of Engagement" (1.55 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T8), "How to Be a Gentleman" (1.45 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T8), "Hawaii Five-0" (2.95 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #7) and "48 Hours Mystery" (4.82 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3).

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live," with host Lindsay Lohan and musical guest Jack White (3.0/8 in metered-market households), dominated its time period. In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.6 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49, making it the night's #1 non-sports program in the Local People Meters, ahead of all primetime telecasts on ABC, CBS and Fox.

[NOTE: Today's numbers are courtesy of TVMediaInsights.com due to delays from our usual sources.]

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (6/18/11):

FOX (3.75 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1) was the top demo draw on Saturday thanks to the season finales of "Cops" (3.62 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1) and "America's Most Wanted" (3.88 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2).

CBS (4.70 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #2) then remained the most-watched network with a new "Chaos" (3.86 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5) followed by encores of "NCIS" (5.01 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.24 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3).

Next up was NBC (3.03 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #3) with repeats of "Minute to Win It" (2.45 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T7), "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2.83 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T7) and "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (3.80 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5).

And finally, ABC (1.56 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #4) did the same with "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (1.55 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.3, #11), another "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (1.48 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10) and "Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition" (1.65 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T7).

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

Currently not available.

Source: Nielsen Media Research