nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, july 23, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

A rebroadcast of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (3.28 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T1) was enough to put ABC (3.28 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #1) on top on Saturday.

FOX (2.54 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #2) then claimed the silver with encores of "Cops" (3.15 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3), "Family Guy" (2.09 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) and "The Cleveland Show" (1.79 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6).

Next up was CBS (5.01 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #3) with repeats of "NCIS: Los Angeles" (3.93 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T8), "NCIS" (5.95 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.15 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3).

And finally, repeats of "Who Do You Think You Are?" (2.01 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10), "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2.67 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T8) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.56 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T1) on NBC (3.08 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4) rounded out the evening.

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):
In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.7 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox. "SNL" is up 6 percent versus the same night last year (1.7 vs. 1.6).

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (7/24/10):

FOX (3.85 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1) was the network to beat on Saturday with its mainstays "Cops" (3.34 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.9, #4) and "America's Most Wanted" (4.37 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #1).

CBS (4.19 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #2) then claimed the silver with its all-repeat lineup of "Cold Case" (3.48 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T8), "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (4.00 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T5) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.10 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.2, #2).

Next up was NBC (3.09 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T3) with a new "Persons Unknown" (2.09 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.5, #10) followed by repeats of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2.82 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T8) and a second "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (4.36 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3).

And finally, repeats of "The Game Plan" (2.93 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T5) and "Rookie Blue" (2.81 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #7) on ABC (2.89 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T3) rounded out the evening.

Source: Nielsen Media Research