nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, july 22, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 12 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

ABC (7.89 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.6, #1) was the network to beat on Sunday with the season finale of "The Bachelorette" (8.58 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.0, #2). Bookending the two-hour finale were a repeat of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (5.28 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T4) and the live special "The Bachelorette: After the Finale Rose" (9.12 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.2, #1).

CBS (5.18 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.2, #2) then had to settle for second place with its mix of "60 Minutes" (7.28 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7), "Big Brother 14" (5.36 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.9, #3), "The Good Wife" (3.88 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and "The Mentalist" (4.20 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9).

Next up was FOX (2.74 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3) with repeats of "The Simpsons" (2.03 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and "Family Guy" (2.58 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T4) followed by a modest showing for "Teen Choice 2012" (2.96 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #6).

And finally, a two-hour "Dateline NBC" (4.22 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7) and a rebroadcast of "America's Got Talent" (3.04 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #12) on NBC (3.63 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #4) rounded out the night.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+36.36% - The Bachelorette (vs. 7/16/12)
+25.00% - Dateline NBC
-13.64% - Big Brother 14

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+300.00% - The Bachelorette: After the Finale Rose (vs. Body of Proof (Repeat))
+252.94% - The Bachelorette (vs. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (Repeat)/Castle (Repeat))
-4.76% - Dateline NBC (vs. Dateline NBC/America's Got Talent (Repeat))
-20.83% - Big Brother 14
-33.33% - Teen Choice 2012 (vs. The Simpsons (Repeat)/The Cleveland Show (Repeat)/Family Guy (Repeat)/American Dad (Repeat))

Here are the highlights of the 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (7/24/11):

CBS (6.43 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.5, #1) held onto the top spot on Sunday with its mix of "60 Minutes" (8.21 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T8), "Big Brother 13" (6.90 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.4, #1), the debut of "Same Name" (5.27 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T4) and a repeat of "CSI: Miami" (5.32 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.2, #7).

FOX (2.88 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) then took home the silver with its all-repeat lineup of "American Dad" (1.79 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T15), "Bob's Burgers" (2.01 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10), "The Simpsons" (3.66 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.8, #2), "The Cleveland Show" (2.99 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T4), "Family Guy" (3.64 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.8, #3) and another "American Dad" (3.19 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T4).

Next up was NBC (4.13 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3) and its combination of "Dateline NBC" (4.37 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10), "America's Got Talent" (4.52 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T8) and "The Marriage Ref" (3.12 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10).

And finally, repeats of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (5.19 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (3.98 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10), "Castle" (3.75 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #17) and "Body of Proof" (4.28 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T15) on ABC (4.30 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #4) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Big Brother 13 (0.0%), The Marriage Ref (0.0%).

Source: Nielsen Media Research