nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, january 14, 2012)

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

Coverage of the "NFL Playoff: Denver at New England" (29.06 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 10.6, #1) surged CBS (29.06 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 10.6, #1) to the top on Saturday.

A distant silver then went to FOX (8.69 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #2) with its mix of "NFL Overrun" (25.12 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 8.9, #2), "Cops" (5.22 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3) and a repeat of "Terra Nova" (2.21 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6).

Next up was ABC (5.42 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #3) with an encore of "Winter Wipeout" (2.91 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #5) followed by "The 2012 Miss America Pageant" (6.68 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3).

And finally, repeats of "The Firm" (2.17 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8), another "The Firm" (2.34 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.41 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T6) on NBC (2.64 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) closed out the night.

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

"Saturday Night Live" (5.2/12 in metered-market households) with host Daniel Radcliffe and musical guest Lana Del Rey, dominated its time period with the highest non-sports rating of the night in metered-market households, ahead of all Saturday primetime entertainment telecasts on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox (excludes Fox's 8-8:30 half-hour, which was impacted by an NFL overrun). Versus the same night last year, "SNL" is up 2 percent in metered-market households (5.2 vs. 5.1).

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 3.0 rating, 12 share in adults 18-49 to rank #1 among the night's entertainment telecasts ahead of all Saturday primetime non-sports programs on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox (excludes Fox's 8-8:30 half-hour, which was impacted by an NFL overrun). "SNL" matched its second-highest 18-49 rating in the Local People Meters so far this season, behind only last week's 4.3/18 for an edition hosted by Charles Barkley with musical guest Kelly Clarkson that followed an NFL Wild Card playoff game.

[NOTE: Today's numbers are courtesy of TVMediaInsights.com due to delays from our usual sources.]

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (1/15/11):

FOX (27.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 9.9, #1) eclipsed the competiton on Saturday with its coverage of the "NFL Playoff: Green Bay at Atlanta" (27.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 9.9, #1).

CBS (6.64 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2) then scooped up the leftovers with its mix of "NFL Overrun" (12.46 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.8, #2), "NCIS" (6.88 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4), "The Defenders" (5.12 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T6) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.13 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T6).

Next up was ABC (5.81 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #3) with an encore of "Wipeout" (3.69 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.3, #5) followed by "The Miss America Pageant" (6.62 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.6, #3).

And finally, repeats of "Chuck" (1.30 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #10), "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (2.32 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #9) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.73 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.8, #8) on NBC (2.45 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) rounded out the evening.

And in late-night, a new Gwyneth Paltrow -hosted "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 5.1 household rating, 12 share in the metered markets, including a 3.1 rating among adults 18-49.

Source: Nielsen Media Research