nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, march 26, 2013)

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

CBS (13.488 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.4, #1) was the still the network to beat on Tuesday with new episodes of "NCIS" (18.063 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.1, #2), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (14.322 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.6, #3) and "Golden Boy" (8.079 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T11).

NBC (6.580 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.2, #2) then was a close second place with night two of "The Voice" (12.017 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.9, #1) followed by new episodes of "Go On" (5.642 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.1, #6), "The New Normal" (3.584 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T11) and "Smash" (3.111 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #13).

Next up was ABC (9.774 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3) with originals from "Splash" (6.666 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.6, #9), "Dancing with the Stars" (13.074 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.3, #4) and "Body of Proof" (9.583 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.7, #8).

Meanwhile, FOX (4.053 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3) offered up new episodes of "Hell's Kitchen" (4.570 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.9, #7), "New Girl" (4.264 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 2.2, #5) and "The Mindy Project" (2.810 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.5, #10).

And finally, encores of "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" (1.141 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.4, #14) and "Beauty and the Beast" (0.655 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.2, #15) on The CW (0.898 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+110.00% - Go On
+100.00% - The New Normal
+25.00% - Smash
+13.33% - Body of Proof
+9.52% - Dancing with the Stars
0.00% - NCIS
0.00% - New Girl
-5.00% - Hell's Kitchen
-7.14% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-11.76% - The Mindy Project
-17.65% - Golden Boy
-38.46% - Splash

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+105.26% - The Voice (vs. The Biggest Loser 13)
+35.71% - Hell's Kitchen (vs. Raising Hope/Raising Hope (Repeat))
+10.53% - Go On (vs. The Biggest Loser 13)
+7.14% - The Mindy Project (vs. Breaking In)
-8.82% - NCIS
-10.34% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-12.00% - New Girl
-15.79% - Splash (vs. Dancing With the Stars: The Story So Far)
-19.05% - Body of Proof
-26.32% - The New Normal (vs. The Biggest Loser 13)
-30.00% - Golden Boy (vs. Unforgettable)
-33.33% - Smash (vs. Fashion Star)

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

* In Nielsen's 56 metered markets, household results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 2.6/7; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.4/6; and ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 2.2/6.

* In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 Wednesday results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.7/3; "Late Show," 0.6/3; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.8/4.

* From 12:35-1:05 a.m. ET Wednesday night, ABC's "Nightline" averaged a 1.3/4 in metered-market households and a 0.4/2 in 18-49 in the Local People Meters.

* From 12:35-1:35 a.m. ET, "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households) tied CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.2/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.4/3 in 18-49) tied "Late Late Show" (0.4/3).

* At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households and a 0.2/2 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (3/27/12):

New episodes of "NCIS" (18.24 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.4, #1), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (14.69 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.9, #3) and "Unforgettable" (10.44 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.0, #6) put CBS (14.46 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.8, #1) in front on Tuesday.

ABC (11.91 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.3, #2) then claimed the silver with its recap special "Dancing With the Stars: The Story So Far" (10.42 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T7) followed by new episodes of "Dancing With the Stars" (15.32 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.0, #2) and "Body of Proof" (9.99 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.1, #5).

Next up was NBC (5.08 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #3) with fresh installments of "The Biggest Loser 13" (5.62 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T7) - to its series low for regular telecasts - and "Fashion Star" (4.00 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T9).

Meanwhile, FOX (3.65 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #4) offered up its mix of a new "Raising Hope" (3.77 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T9) - another season low, a repeat of "Raising Hope" (3.10 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.3, #12) and new episodes of "New Girl" (4.90 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.5, #4) - likewise a season low - and "Breaking In" (2.82 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.4, #11).

And finally, originals of "90210" (1.36 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #13) and "Ringer" (1.10 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.5, #14) rounded out the night for The CW (1.23 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #5). In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "90210" delivered a 1.1 rating while "Ringer" posted a 0.8 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+50.00% - Body of Proof (vs. 3/13/12)
+7.69% - Breaking In
+3.57% - NCIS: Los Angeles
+3.03% - NCIS
0.00% - 90210
0.00% - Ringer
-3.85% - New Girl
-4.76% - Unforgettable
-6.25% - Raising Hope
-13.64% - The Biggest Loser 13
-16.67% - Fashion Star

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+133.33% - 90210 (vs. One Tree Hill (Repeat))
+92.31% - New Girl (vs. Raising Hope (Repeat))
+66.67% - Ringer (vs. Hellcats (Repeat))
+27.27% - Breaking In (vs. Traffic Light)
+7.14% - Raising Hope (vs. Glee (Repeat))
+5.26% - Unforgettable (vs. The Good Wife)
-10.53% - NCIS
-17.14% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-21.05% - Fashion Star (vs. Parenthood)
-26.92% - The Biggest Loser 13
-28.57% - Dancing With the Stars
-29.63% - Dancing With the Stars: The Story So Far
-30.00% - Body of Proof

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

In Nielsen's 56 metered markets, household results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 2.7/7; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.5/6; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.8/9; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 2.1/6.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.7/4; "Late Show," 0.6/3; "Nightline," 1.1/5; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.7/4.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.3/4 in metered-market household) beat CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.2/4 with an encore). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-4) topped "Late Late Show" (0.3/2 with an encore).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.9/4 in metered-market households and a 0.3/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters

Source: Nielsen Media Research