nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for friday, may 24, 2013)

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

ABC (4.785 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #1) was the network to beat on Friday with its all-repeat lineup of "Shark Tank" (4.401 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.3, #2), another "Shark Tank" (4.929 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) and "20/20" (5.026 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3).

NBC (5.108 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #2) then claimed the silver with a rebroadcast of "Dateline NBC" (5.636 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4) and a new "Rock Center With Brian Williams" (4.051 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #6).

Next up was FOX (2.842 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with a repeat of "Bones" (2.964 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7) and the special "Brain Games" (2.722 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4).

Meanwhile, CBS (4.953 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) offered up second runs of "Undercover Boss" (3.943 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7), "Blue Bloods" (4.817 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T9) and another "Blue Bloods" (6.100 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T9).

And finally, repeats of "Nikita" (0.906 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T11) and "Supernatural" (0.880 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T11) on The CW (0.893 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the night. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "Nikita" delivered a 0.4 rating at 8:00/7:00c and "Supernatural" a 0.3 rating at 9:00/8:00c.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):

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

TBA

Here are the highlights of the 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (5/25/12):

ABC (4.43 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1) was the repeat king on Friday thanks to its mix of "Shark Tank" (4.35 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4), "Primetime: What Would You Do?" (3.98 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.2, #2) and "20/20" (4.96 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #1).

CBS (5.59 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T2) then was the most-watched network with its encore combination of "Undercover Boss" (4.83 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4), "CSI: NY" (5.56 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T7) and "Blue Bloods" (6.38 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T7).

Next up was FOX (2.34 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T2) with rebroadcasts of "Kitchen Nightmares" (2.16 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T7) and another "Kitchen Nightmares" (2.53 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4).

Meanwhile, NBC (3.43 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) offered up its lineup of "Who Do You Think You Are?" (3.02 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #11), "Grimm" (2.77 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.6, #10) and "Dateline NBC" (4.50 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3).

And finally, repeats of "Nikita" (1.08 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #13) and "Supernatural" (1.14 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.4, #12) on The CW (1.11 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
None.

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
None.

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

TBA

Source: Nielsen Media Research