nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, january 28, 2012)

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

FOX (4.37 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1) snagged the top spot on Saturday with its coverage of "UFC on FOX 2" (4.37 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1). Said numbers were down a few ticks from "UFC on FOX 1" (4.62 million viewers; adults 18-49: 2.4) on 11/12/11.

The silver then went to ABC (3.21 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #2) with encores of "Winter Wipeout" (4.04 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3) and "Blades of Glory" (2.80 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T4).

Next up was CBS (4.82 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with repeats of "Rules of Engagement" (2.60 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T7), "Mike & Molly" (3.01 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.7, #6) and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (5.14 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T4) followed by a new "48 Hours Mystery" (6.52 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.3, #2).

And finally, a rebroadcast of "Harry's Law" (4.09 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #9) led into coverage of "The U.S. Figure Skating Championships" (3.71 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T7) on NBC (3.84 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4).

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live" (3.6/9 in metered-market households) with host Jimmy Fallon and musical guest Michael Bublé, dominated its time period. In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.8 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49.

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

Here are the highlights of the eight ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (1/29/11):

FOX (5.25 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.7, #1) was the network to beat on Saturday with its usual lineup of "Cops" (5.24 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T2) and "America's Most Wanted" (5.26 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1).

Second place then went to CBS (6.16 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.3, #2) with its mix of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (4.53 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #6), "Criminal Minds" (6.33 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #4) and "48 Hours Mystery" (7.63 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T2).

Next up was ABC (3.34 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with the feature "Dreamgirls" (3.34 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #5).

And finally, a repeat of "Harry's Law" (4.24 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T7) led into primetime coverage of the "U.S. Figure Skating Championships" (3.90 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T7) on NBC (4.01 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4).

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

"Saturday Night Live" (5.1/12 in metered-market households) hosted by Jesse Eisenberg with musical guest Nicki Minaj and a special appearance by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, dominated its time period. Versus the same night last year, "SNL" is up 1 percent in metered-market households (5.1 versus 5.0).

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 3.2 rating, 14 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 non-sports telecast of the night, ahead of all primetime entertainment programs on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

In the 25 Local People Meter markets, "Saturday Night Live" tied the September 25 season premiere as the second-highest-rated edition of the season in 18-49, behind only the January 8 telecast, which benefited from a high-rated primetime NFL game on NBC that night.

Source: Nielsen Media Research