nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, august 11, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

NBC (18.57 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.0, #1) was still the top draw on Saturday with its one-hour special "Their Finest Hour" (13.25 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #2) plus the penultimate night of the "2012 Summer Olympics" (21.21 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.9, #1).

FOX (2.45 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #2) then was a very distant second place with its mix of "Cops" (2.75 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3), another "Cops" (2.84 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) and "Mobbed" (2.11 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5).

Next up was ABC (2.69 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #3) with encores of "The Game Plan" (2.65 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6) and "Castle" (2.76 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #8).

And finally, CBS (2.94 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4) closed out the night with the series finale of "NYC 22" (2.81 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T9) plus repeats of "48 Hours Mystery" (2.88 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T9) and a second "48 Hours Mystery" (3.12 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6).

[NOTE #1: Late-night metered market ratings will return after the Olympics.]

[NOTE #2: Today's numbers are courtesy of TVMediaInsights.com due to delays from our usual sources.]

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (8/13/11):

FOX (3.63 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1) slipped past the competition on Saturday with its all-repeat lineup of "Cops" (4.18 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.3, #1), "Family Guy" (3.28 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T3) and "The Cleveland Show" (2.89 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5).

NBC (3.82 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2) then claimed a close second with its mix of "Who Do You Think You Are?" (3.46 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #8), "Wrestlemania: The World Premiere" (3.64 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T3) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.35 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.2, #2).

Next up was ABC (3.69 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3) with a rebroadcast of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (3.69 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5).

And finally, repeats of "NCIS: Los Angeles" (4.29 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T9), "48 Hours Mystery" (4.70 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T9) and another "48 Hours Mystery" (5.51 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5) on CBS (4.83 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #4) rounded out the evening.

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live" (3.3/8 in metered-market households), hosted by Jesse Eisenberg with musical guest Nicki Minaj, dominated its time period. Versus the same night last year, "SNL" is up 18 percent (3.3 vs. 2.8).

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.7 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox. Versus the same night last year, "SNL" is up 13 percent in the Local People Meters (1.7 vs. 1.5).

Source: Nielsen Media Research