nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, june 30, 2012)

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

NBC (4.78 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1) was tops for the second night in a row with its coverage of the "U.S. Olympic Team Trials: Swimming Finals" (5.33 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #2) and "U.S. Olympic Team Trials: Track & Field Finals" (6.46 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1) followed by a new "The Firm" (2.56 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5).

CBS (3.89 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2) then claimed a distant silver with its repeat lineup of "CSI: NY" (3.08 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5), "Blue Bloods" (3.73 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "48 Hours Mystery" (4.87 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3).

Next up was FOX (2.72 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T2) and its penultimate week of the "Saturday Baseball Game of the Week" (2.72 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4).

And finally, repeats of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (2.10 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "Castle" (3.24 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) on ABC (2.47 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) closed out the night.

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live," with host Emma Stone and musical guest Coldplay (2.8/7 in metered-market households), dominated its time period. In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.3 rating, 6 share in adults 18-49, making it the night's #1 non-sports program in the Local People Meters, ahead of all primetime entertainment telecasts on ABC, CBS and NBC.

"SNL" is currently matching its results of one week earlier in metered-market households and the Local People Meters.

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

Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (7/2/11):

FOX (2.79 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #1) claimed top honors on the Saturday holiday with full hours of "Cops" (2.47 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) and another "Cops" (3.11 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1).

CBS (3.25 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) then was the most-watched network with a new "Chaos" (2.59 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) followed by repeats of "CSI: NY" (3.18 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "48 Hours Mystery" (3.98 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3).

Next up was NBC (2.48 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) with encores of "Minute to Win It" (2.05 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8), "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2.34 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8) and "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (3.05 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4).

And finally, ABC (1.85 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T2) closed out the night with rebroadcasts of "101 Ways to Leave a Game Show" (2.07 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5), "Expedition Impossible" (1.69 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T5) and "Rookie Blue" (1.80 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T8).

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

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live" (2.9/8 in metered-market households), hosted by Helen Mirren with musical guest Foo Fighters, dominated its time period.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 1.5 rating, 7 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox.

Source: Nielsen Media Research