nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, october 18, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

FOX (10.15 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.8, #1) was the network to beat on Tuesday thanks to special editions of "The X Factor" (9.94 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.6, #3) and a second "The X Factor" (10.35 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 4.0, #1).

CBS (15.41 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.2, #2) then claimed the silver with its lineup of "NCIS" (19.01 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.8, #2), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (15.33 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.3, #4) and "Unforgettable" (11.87 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.5, #7).

Next up was ABC (10.68 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.4, #3) with week two of "Last Man Standing" (10.20 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.0, #5) followed by the premiere of "Man Up!" (7.80 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.4, #8) and fresh installments of "Dancing With the Stars" (13.55 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.6, #6) and "Body of Proof" (9.50 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T10).

Meanwhile, NBC (5.09 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.9, #4) offered up new episodes of "The Biggest Loser 12" (5.15 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T10) and "Parenthood" (4.97 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 2.0, #9).

And finally, new episodes of "90210" (1.44 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #13) and "Ringer" (1.79 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.8, #12) on The CW (1.62 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) closed out the evening. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "90210" delivered a 1.2 rating while "Ringer" posted a 1.1 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+16.67% - 90210
+8.70% - Unforgettable
0.00% - NCIS: Los Angeles
0.00% - Ringer
0.00% - Body of Proof
-2.56% - NCIS
-4.76% - Parenthood
-5.00% - The Biggest Loser 12
-9.09% - Last Man Standing
-18.75% - Dancing With the Stars

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+36.36% - Last Man Standing (vs. No Ordinary Family)
+14.29% - Ringer (vs. Life Unexpected)
+9.09% - Man Up! (vs. No Ordinary Family)
+5.26% - Parenthood
0.00% - Body of Proof (vs. Detroit 187)
-3.85% - Unforgettable (vs. The Good Wife)
-9.52% - NCIS
-15.38% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-16.13% - Dancing With the Stars
-24.00% - The Biggest Loser 12
-30.00% - 90210 (vs. One Tree Hill)

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," 2.5/6 with an encore; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.4/8; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.5/5 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.9/4 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.8/4 with an encore; "Nightline," 1.1/5; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.6/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.3/5 in metered-market households with an encore) tied CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.3/5). 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 0.8/4 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 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (10/19/10):

With FOX (4.61 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #4) opting for mostly repeats, CBS (15.76 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.6, #1) had no trouble taking home top honors thanks to "NCIS" (19.08 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.2, #1), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (15.98 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.9, #2) and "The Good Wife" (12.23 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.6, #4).

The silver then went to ABC (10.32 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.4, #2) and its combination of "No Ordinary Family" (7.41 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.2, #6), "Dancing With the Stars" (15.27 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.1, #3) and "Detroit 187" (8.28 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T8).

Next up was NBC (6.31 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.3, #3) with fresh installments of "The Biggest Loser" (7.02 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.5, #5) and "Parenthood" (4.89 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T8).

Meanwhile, the aforementioned FOX offered up repeats of "Glee" (5.55 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.0, #7) and "Raising Hope" (4.35 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.7, #10) followed by a new "Running Wilde" (3.01 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.2, #11).

And finally, new episodes of "One Tree Hill" (1.90 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #12) and "Life Unexpected" (1.53 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #13) on The CW (1.72 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) closed out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): NCIS: Los Angeles (11.40%), NCIS (7.70%), Detroit 187 (5.60%), One Tree Hill (0.00%), The Good Wife (0.00%), The Biggest Loser (-3.80%), No Ordinary Family (-4.30%), Parenthood (-5.00%), Dancing With the Stars (-8.80%), Life Unexpected (-12.50%), Running Wilde (-20.00%).

In late-night metered market ratings, ABC's "Nightline" (3.2/7) took top honors over NBC's "Leno" (2.3/6) and CBS's "Letterman" (2.6/6). Rounding out the night then were "Kimmel" (1.7/5) on ABC "Ferguson" (1.3/5) on CBS and "Fallon" (1.1/4) and "Daly" (0.7/3) on NBC.

Source: Nielsen Media Research