nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, october 8, 2011)

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

Coverage of the "ALCS, Game 1" (5.97 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.7, #1) pushed FOX (5.97 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.7, #1) into first place on Saturday.

ABC (5.12 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2) then took home a competitive silver with its mainstay "Saturday Night College Football" (5.12 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2).

Next up was CBS (4.40 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3) with repeats of "Mike & Molly" (3.69 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.0, #5), "2 Broke Girls" (4.00 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #4) and "48 Hours Mystery" (4.15 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #6) followed by a new "48 Hours Mystery" (5.20 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3).

And finally, repeats of "Harry's Law" (2.90 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #9), another "Harry's Law" (3.50 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #8) and yet another "Harry's Law" (4.60 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #7) on NBC (3.68 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) rounded out the evening.

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

"Saturday Night Live" (4.8/12 in metered-market households), hosted by Ben Stiller with musical guest Foster The People, dominated its time period, delivering the #1 rating of the night ahead of all primetime telecasts on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. "Saturday Night Live" matched its rating for the same night last year in metered-market households.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.6 rating, 11 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox.

Here are the highlights of the nine ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (10/9/10):

FOX (4.64 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.5, #1) claimed the adults 18-49 crown on Saturday thanks to its mainstays "Cops" (4.27 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T3) and "America's Most Wanted" (5.00 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.7, #1).

Second place then went to ABC (4.33 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) with its "Saturday Night College Football" (4.33 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) coverage.

Next up was CBS (5.12 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3) with repeats of "NCIS" (5.47 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #6) and "The Defenders" (4.23 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.7, #7) followed by a new "48 Hours Mystery" (5.67 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T3).

And finally, repeats of "The Event" (2.26 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #9), "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (3.30 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #8) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.39 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.1, #5) on NBC (3.32 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) rounded out the evening.

And in late-night, a new "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 4.8 household rating, 12 share in the metered markets.

Source: Nielsen Media Research