nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for monday, february 21, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

ABC (9.90 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #1) squeezed out a victory among adults 18-49 on Monday with new episodes of "The Bachelor" (10.34 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.4, #3) and "Castle" (9.02 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.6, #8).

CBS (10.13 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #2) then had to settle for second place with its mix of "How I Met Your Mother" (9.44 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.6, #1), "Mad Love" (8.02 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.8, #6), "Two and a Half Men" (11.52 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #5), "Mike & Molly" (11.29 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.2, #4) and "Hawaii Five-0" (10.25 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.7, #7). Note that "Men" was a repeat.

FOX (9.18 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.8, #3) then took home the bronze with week three of its lineup of "House" (10.38 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.5, #2) and "The Chicago Code" (7.98 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 2.1, #9).

Next up was NBC (6.11 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4) with new episodes of "Chuck" (5.51 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T10), "The Cape" (4.13 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.2, #12) and "Harry's Law" (8.67 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T10).

And finally, new episodes of "90210" (1.50 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.7, #14) and "Gossip Girl" (1.59 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.8, #13) on The CW (1.55 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #5) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Castle (18.20%), The Bachelor (17.20%), Gossip Girl (14.30%), The Chicago Code (5.00%), House (2.90%), Harry's Law (0.00%), Chuck (0.00%), The Cape (0.00%), 90210 (0.00%), How I Met Your Mother (-2.70%), Hawaii Five-0 (-3.60%), Mad Love (-6.70%), Mike & Molly (-15.80%).

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," 2.8/7 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.9/7; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.2/8; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.4/5 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.8/4 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.9/4; "Nightline," 1.0/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households with an encore) trailed CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.4/5). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-49 with an encore) tied "Late Late Show" (0.5/3).

At 1:35 a.m., Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.3/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Here are the highlights of the 12 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (2/22/10):

NBC (21.07 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.4, #1) entered the final week of its "Winter Olympics 2010" (21.07 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.4, #1) coverage on top on Monday.

ABC (9.20 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.0, #2) then captured the silver with a new "The Bachelor" (11.23 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.9, #2) and a repeat of "Castle" (4.75 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.2, #10).

Next up was CBS (7.79 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.5, #3) with its all-repeat lineup of "How I Met Your Mother" (6.11 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T6), "Accidentally on Purpose" (5.32 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.9, #9), "Two and a Half Men" (10.27 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T3), "The Big Bang Theory" (9.13 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T3) and "CSI: Miami" (7.97 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T6).

Meanwhile, FOX (6.71 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.2, #4) offered up a repeat of "House" (6.14 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.1, #8) and a new "24" (8.73 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.8, #5).

And finally, the hiatus-bound "One Tree Hill" (2.22 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.0, #11) and the 8:00/7:00c-bound "Life Unexpected" (1.96 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.9, #12) on The CW (1.96 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) rounded out the evening.

Source: Nielsen Media Research