nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for monday, february 20, 2012)

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

NBC (12.64 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.6, #1) was the network to beat for the third week in a row thanks to "The Voice" (15.72 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.8, #1) and "Smash" (6.47 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 2.3, #T8).

CBS (11.00 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.5, #2) then took home the silver with new episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" (9.81 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.8, #4), "2 Broke Girls" (11.28 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 4.0, #3), "Two and a Half Men" (13.24 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.1, #2), "Mike & Molly" (11.27 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.4, #5) and "Hawaii Five-0" (10.20 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.8, #6).

Next up was ABC (8.61 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.4, #3) with fresh installments of "The Bachelor" (8.09 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.5, #7) and "Castle" (9.66 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.1, #10).

Meanwhile, FOX (6.46 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.1, #4) offered up its mix of "House" (6.97 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.3, #T8) and "Alcatraz" (5.96 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.8, #11).

And finally, new episodes of "Gossip Girl" (1.01 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.5, #13) and "Hart of Dixie" (1.48 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.6, #12) on The CW (1.25 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.5, #5) rounded out the competition. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "Gossip Girl" delivered a 0.8 rating while "Dixie" posted a 1.1 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+11.76% - How I Met Your Mother
+8.11% - 2 Broke Girls
+7.89% - Two and a Half Men
+7.69% - Hawaii Five-0
+5.00% - Castle
+3.03% - Mike & Molly
0.00% - The Bachelor
0.00% - Hart of Dixie
0.00% - Gossip Girl
-1.69% - The Voice
-4.17% - House
-5.26% - Alcatraz
-17.86% - Smash

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+300.00% - The Voice (vs. Chuck/The Cape)
+42.86% - 2 Broke Girls (vs. Mad Love)
+36.67% - Two and a Half Men (vs. Two and a Half Men (Repeat))
+35.29% - Smash (vs. Harry's Law)
+6.25% - Mike & Molly
+5.56% - How I Met Your Mother
+3.70% - Hawaii Five-0
-14.29% - Alcatraz (vs. The Chicago Code)
-19.23% - Castle
-25.00% - Hart of Dixie (vs. Gossip Girl)
-26.47% - The Bachelor
-28.57% - Gossip Girl (vs. 90210)
-34.29% - House

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," 2.9/8; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.8/7; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.1/8; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.4/4 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; "Late Show," 1.0/4; "Nightline," 0.9/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.5/5 in metered-market households) beat CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.4/5). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.5/3 in 18-49) tied "Late Late Show" (0.5/3).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.9/4 with an encore in metered-market households and a 0.3/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (2/21/11):

ABC (9.90 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #1) squeezed out a victory among adults 18-49 on Monday with new episodes of "The Bachelor" (10.34 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.4, #3) and "Castle" (9.02 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.6, #8).

CBS (10.13 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #2) then had to settle for second place with its mix of "How I Met Your Mother" (9.44 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.6, #1), "Mad Love" (8.02 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.8, #6), "Two and a Half Men" (11.52 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #5), "Mike & Molly" (11.29 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.2, #4) and "Hawaii Five-0" (10.25 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.7, #7). Note that "Men" was a repeat.

FOX (9.18 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.8, #3) then took home the bronze with week three of its lineup of "House" (10.38 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.5, #2) and "The Chicago Code" (7.98 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 2.1, #9).

Next up was NBC (6.11 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4) with new episodes of "Chuck" (5.51 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T10), "The Cape" (4.13 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.2, #12) and "Harry's Law" (8.67 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T10).

And finally, new episodes of "90210" (1.50 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.7, #14) and "Gossip Girl" (1.59 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.8, #13) on The CW (1.55 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #5) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Castle (18.20%), The Bachelor (17.20%), Gossip Girl (14.30%), The Chicago Code (5.00%), House (2.90%), Harry's Law (0.00%), Chuck (0.00%), The Cape (0.00%), 90210 (0.00%), How I Met Your Mother (-2.70%), Hawaii Five-0 (-3.60%), Mad Love (-6.70%), Mike & Molly (-15.80%).

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," 2.9/7; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 3.2/8; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.4/5 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.8/4 with an encore; "Late Show," 0.9/4; "Nightline," 1.0/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.2/4 in metered-market households with an encore) trailed CBS's first-run "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.4/5). 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 0.8/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.3/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Source: Nielsen Media Research