nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, august 19, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to the nature of live sports, Fast Nationals for NBC are approximate.]

NBC (8.13 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.6, #1) snagged the top spot on Sunday with its mix of "Dateline NBC" (5.75 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T5) and "NFL Preseason: Indianapolis at Pittsburgh" (8.93 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #1).

FOX (3.00 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) then claimed the silver with its all-repeat lineup of "American Dad" (1.76 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T12), "The Cleveland Show" (2.11 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.9, #11), "The Simpsons" (3.11 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.4, #7), another "The Simpsons" (3.37 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T5), "Family Guy" (3.69 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.8, #4) and another "Family Guy" (3.98 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.9, #3).

Next up was CBS (5.60 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.2, #3) with its mix of "60 Minutes" (7.72 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T8), "Big Brother 14" (6.50 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.3, #2), "The Good Wife" (3.58 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T14) and "The Mentalist" (4.59 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T12).

And finally, encores of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (4.81 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T8) and "Once Upon a Time" (2.78 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T14) followed by the season finale of "Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition" (3.52 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T8) on ABC (3.66 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) rounded out the night.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+50.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. 7/22/12)
+35.29% - Big Brother 14
+22.22% - Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition
-21.43% - 60 Minutes

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. Dateline NBC (Repeat))
-21.43% - Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition (vs. 20/20: The Sixth Sense (Repeat))
-21.43% - 60 Minutes (vs. 60 Minutes (Repeat))
-30.30% - Big Brother 14

Here are the highlights of the 16 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (8/21/11):

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to the nature of live sports, Fast Nationals for NBC are approximate. Due to local NFL preseason preemptions, Fast Nationals for CBS are inflated.]

NBC (8.90 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.9, #1) was the network to beat on Sunday with its mix of "Dateline NBC" (6.85 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.5, #5), "NFL Preseason Pregame" (9.31 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.9, #3) and "NFL Preseason: Chargers/Cowboys" (9.64 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.4, #1).

CBS (6.69 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.7, #2) then got bumped to second place with its combination of "60 Minutes" (8.50 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T6), "Big Brother 13" (8.82 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.3, #2), "The Good Wife" (4.19 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T14) and "CSI: Miami" (5.23 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T8).

Next up was ABC (5.45 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3) with encores of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (5.25 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T8), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (4.72 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.1, #13) and "20/20: The Sixth Sense" (5.91 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T6).

And finally, repeats of "American Dad" (1.70 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.8, #16), "Bob's Burgers" (2.05 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T14), "The Simpsons" (2.89 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T8), "The Cleveland Show" (2.61 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T8) and "Family Guy" (3.80 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.7, #4) led into an original "In The Flow with Affion Crockett" (2.47 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T8) on FOX (2.59 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.2, #4).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Big Brother 13 (32.0%), In The Flow with Affion Crockett (20.0%).

Source: Nielsen Media Research