nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for tuesday, july 31, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 12 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

NBC (37.49 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 12.2, #1) climbed to a post-Opening Ceremony high on Tuesday with its coverage of the "2012 Summer Olympics" (37.49 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 12.2, #1).

A distant silver then went to CBS (5.44 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #2) with repeats of "NCIS" (6.78 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (5.19 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2) and "Person of Interest" (4.35 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T5).

Next up was FOX (2.25 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with rebroadcasts of "MasterChef" (2.33 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2) and a second "MasterChef" (2.17 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T5).

Meanwhile, ABC (2.56 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4) offered up repeats of "The Middle" (2.83 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7), "Last Man Standing" (2.21 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #10), "Wipeout" (2.37 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7) and a new "NY Med" (2.80 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #9).

And finally, a repeat of "Hart of Dixie" (0.78 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T11) and a new "The L.A. Complex" (0.55 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T11) on The CW (0.67 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.2, #5) closed out the night. In the netlet's target demo (women 18-34), "Dixie" delivered a 0.3 rating while "Complex" posted a 0.2 rating.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - The L.A. Complex
-45.45% - NY Med

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):

0.00% - The L.A. Complex (vs. Shedding for the Wedding (Repeat))
-40.00% - NY Med (vs. Combat Hospital)

[NOTE: Late-night metered market ratings will return after the Olympics.]

Here are the highlights of the 12 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (8/2/11):

FOX (6.00 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.5, #1) claimed top honors on Tuesday with fresh installments of "Hell's Kitchen" (6.17 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.6, #2) and "Masterchef" (5.84 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.4, #3).

NBC (9.32 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.4, #2) then was the most-watched network with new episodes of "It's Worth What?" (4.80 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.2, #8) and "America's Got Talent" (11.58 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.9, #1).

Next up was ABC (5.13 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.6, #3) with a special "Wipeout" (6.49 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.0, #4) followed by the premiere of "Take the Money and Run" (5.14 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.9, #5) and a new "Combat Hospital" (3.75 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9).

Meanwhile, CBS (7.42 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #4) offered up repeats of "NCIS" (9.52 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T6), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (7.96 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T6) and "48 Hours Mystery" (4.79 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9).

And finally, repeats of "90210" (0.72 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.3, #11) and "Shedding for the Wedding" (0.40 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.2, #12) on The CW (0.56 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.2, #5) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Combat Hospital (11.1%), Hell's Kitchen (0.0%), Masterchef (0.0%), America's Got Talent (-3.3%), It's Worth What? (-14.3%).

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," 2.9/7; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.2/5; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 2.7/6; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.1/3.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.9/4; "Late Show," 0.5/2; "Nightline," 0.8/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.4/2.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.4/5 in metered-market households) beat CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.1/4). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.6/4 in 18-49) topped "Late Late Show" (0.3/2).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.4/3 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Source: Nielsen Media Research