nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, may 18, 2013)

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

FOX (2.602 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #1) was the top demo draw on Saturday with repeats of its Spike TV bound "Cops" (2.355 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T5), another "Cops" (2.682 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3), yet another "Cops" (2.669 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) and even more "Cops" (2.702 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1).

ABC (3.054 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2) then took home the silver with a new "Bet on Your Baby" (1.989 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T10) and its two-hour special "20/20: Rock 'n' Royalty: Billboard's All-Stars" (3.586 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T5).

Next up was NBC (2.187 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2) with rebroadcasts of "Grimm" (1.847 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T10), "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (2.430 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #8) and "Saturday Night Live" (2.284 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T5).

And finally, repeats of "Elementary" (2.472 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.3, #12) and "Criminal Minds" (3.158 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #9) plus a new "48 Hours" (3.921 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) on CBS (3.183 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) rounded out the night.

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

* "Saturday Night Live," with host Ben Affleck and musical guest Kanye West (4.7/12 in metered-market households) dominated its time period, delivering the top rating of the night among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in the Local People Meters. "SNL" earned its highest rating in metered-market households since April 6 (4.8 for a telecast hosted by Melissa McCarthy with musical guest Phoenix).

* In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.7 rating, 13 share in adults 18-49. "SNL" posted the top rating of the night among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in the Local People Meters, out-rating all primetime programming on those networks. In fact, "SNL" more than tripled the highest primetime 18-49 rating on those networks (0.8/3 each for ABC's "20/20" and Fox's 9:30 "Cops"). "SNL" matched its highest 18-49 rating in the Local People Meters since April 13 (2.8 for an edition hosted by Vince Vaughn with musical guest Miguel).

Here are the highlights of the seven ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (5/19/12):

CBS (4.16 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) was the most-watched network on a lackluster Saturday thanks to its mix of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (3.44 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #7), "Criminal Minds" (4.22 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #6) and "48 Hours Mystery" (4.83 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T1).

The silver then went to NBC (4.01 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) with encores of "America's Got Talent" (3.83 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.38 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T1).

And finally, the feature "Spider-Man 3" (2.95 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) on ABC (2.95 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) and primetime coverage of the "Saturday Baseball Game of the Week" (2.99 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) on FOX (2.99 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3) rounded out the night.

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

"Saturday Night Live," with host and musical guest Mick Jagger (5.2/13 in metered-market households), dominated its time period with the #1 rating of the night, ahead of all primetime telecasts on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. "SNL" equaled its highest rating in metered-market households since March 3 (with host Lindsay Lohan and musical guest Jack White)

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.7 rating, 12 share in adults 18-49, making it the night's #1 program in the Local People Meters, ahead of all primetime telecasts on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

Source: Nielsen Media Research