nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, december 27, 2011)

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

CBS (9.75 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.4, #1) was the network to beat on Tuesday with a repeat of "NCIS" (12.53 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.1, #1) followed by "The 34th Annual Kennedy Center Honors" (8.35 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T6).

ABC (5.14 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #2) then claimed the silver with its mix of "Last Man Standing" (6.11 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T2), another "Last Man Standing" (5.67 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T2), "The Middle" (4.75 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #4), "Suburgatory" (4.06 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.2, #5) and "Body of Proof" (5.13 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T6).

Next up was NBC (2.66 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) with repeats of "The Biggest Loser 12" (2.98 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and "Parenthood" (2.03 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T11).

Meanwhile, FOX (2.46 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) offered up encores of "Glee" (2.18 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T11), "New Girl" (2.78 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #8) and "Raising Hope" (2.69 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9).

And finally, the feature "Keith" (0.95 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #13) on The CW (0.95 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), the film posted a 0.4 rating.

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," 2.5/6 with an encore telecast; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.3/5 with an encore; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.0/7; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.3/4 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.8/3 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.5/2 with an encore; "Nightline," 0.9/3; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/2 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households with an encore) beat CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.1/3 with an encore). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-49 with an encore) topped "Late Late Show" (0.3/2 with an encore).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.3/2 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (12/28/10):

A special Tuesday edition of "Sunday Night Football" (21.83 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.5, #1) towered over the competition as NBC (21.54 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.3, #1) took home top honors last night. Leading off the evening was a half-hour "Sunday Night Football Pre-Game" (20.11 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 6.4, #2).

CBS (9.78 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2) then was a distant second place with a repeat of "NCIS" (10.59 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.0, #3) followed by "The 33rd Annual Kennedy Center Honors" (9.38 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4).

Next up was FOX (4.04 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3) with second runs of "Glee" (4.00 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #5) and another "Glee" (4.08 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.3, #6).

Meanwhile, ABC (3.61 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up its own all-repeat lineup of "Rudolph's Shiny New Year" (3.99 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.2, #7), "No Ordinary Family" (3.37 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.9, #8) and "Detroit 187" (3.46 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #9).

And finally, repeats of "One Tree Hill" (0.93 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10) and "Life Unexpected" (0.70 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.3, #11) on The CW (0.81 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the night.

Source: Nielsen Media Research