nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, november 17, 2012)

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

ABC (6.45 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1) was the top draw on Saturday with its coverage of "College Football: Stanford at Oregon" (6.45 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1).

Second place then went to CBS (4.20 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T2) with its mix of "Elementary" (3.38 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #6) and "48 Hours" (3.80 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) repeats followed by a new "48 Hours" (5.41 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2).

Next up was FOX (3.05 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T2) and its telecast of "College Football: Oklahoma at West Virginia" (3.05 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3).

And finally, NBC (2.55 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4) closed out the evening with its all-repeat lineup of "Revolution" (2.00 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T7), "Chicago Fire" (2.35 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T7) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.31 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #5).

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

* "Saturday Night Live," with host Jeremy Renner and musical guest Maroon 5, averaged a 5.1/12 in metered-market households, the show's second-highest overnights of the season. The only higher rating so far this season was the 5.4 on October 20 with an edition hosted by Bruno Mars. In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, last night's "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.7 rating, 12 share in adults 18-49.

* Versus the same night last year, "SNL" was up 11 percent in metered-market households (5.1 vs. 4.6).

* In national ratings so far this season, original telecasts of "Saturday Night Live" are up versus one year ago by 7 percent in 18-49 rating (with a 3.1 vs. a 2.9, "most current") and up 6 percent in total viewers (8.0 million vs. 7.5 million).

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (11/19/11):

ABC (6.80 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.4, #1) cruised to the top spot with its coverage of "Saturday Night College Football" (6.80 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.4, #1).

A silver medal then went to CBS (4.69 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2) with its mix of "The Big Bang Theory" (4.39 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.2, #4), "2 Broke Girls" (4.14 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T2), "The Mentalist" (4.41 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #7) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.38 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T5).

Next up was FOX (2.86 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with a full hour of "Cops" (3.86 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T2) followed by a repeat of "Terra Nova" (1.85 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T8).

And finally, repeats of "Harry's Law" (2.80 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10), "Prime Suspect" (3.38 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T8) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.18 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T5) on NBC (3.45 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) rounded out the night.

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

"Saturday Night Live," hosted by Jason Segel with musical guest Florence + The Machine, averaged a 4.6/11 in metered-market households. "SNL" is the #1 non-sports telecast on the night, topping all of Saturday's primetime entertainment programming on CBS, NBC and Fox in metered-market households.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.8 rating, 12 share in adults 18-49, tying the October 12 telecast (with host Charlie Day and musical guest Maroon 5) for the top "SNL" rating in the Local People Meters since the "SNL" season finale on May 21, 2011 (with host Justin Timberlake and musical guest Lady Gaga).

"SNL" is the #1 telecast of the night in the Local People Meters, topping all primetime programming on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. In the Local People Meters, "SNL" is up 4 percent versus its 2.7 on the same night last year.

Source: Nielsen Media Research