nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for thursday, august 16, 2012)

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to the nature of live sports, Fast Nationals for FOX are approximate.]

CBS (6.25 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.8, #T1) was the most-watched network on Thursday thanks to its mix of "The Big Bang Theory" (8.09 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.1, #2), "Two and a Half Men" (6.85 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.9, #3), "Big Brother 14" (6.31 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.3, #1) and "Person of Interest" (4.97 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.1, #9).

Sharing the demo crown however was FOX (5.01 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.8, #T1) and its coverage of "NFL Preseason: Cincinnati at Atlanta" (5.01 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.8, #4).

Next up was ABC (4.64 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.4, #3) with its all-original lineup of "Wipeout" (5.47 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.6, #5), "Time Machine Chefs" (3.46 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T7) and "Rookie Blue" (4.99 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.3, #6).

Meanwhile, NBC (4.16 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up repeats of "The Office" (3.40 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10) and "Parks & Recreation" (2.93 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T10) followed by the return of "Saving Hope" (4.18 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.9, #12) and "Rock Center With Brian Williams" (5.15 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T7).

And finally, night two of "Oh Sit!" (0.91 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13) and the premiere of "The Next" (0.85 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13) on The CW (0.88 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the night.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
50.00% - Saving Hope (vs. 7/26/12)
50.00% - Rock Center With Brian Williams (vs. 7/26/12)
9.52% - Big Brother 14
-5.88% - Wipeout
-13.33% - Rookie Blue

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+33.33% - Rock Center With Brian Williams (vs. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Repeat))
+8.33% - Rookie Blue
0.00% - The Next (vs. Plain Jane (Repeat))
-7.69% - Time Machine Chefs (vs. Expedition Impossible)
-10.00% - Saving Hope (vs. The Office (Repeat)/30 Rock (Repeat))
-15.79% - Wipeout
-23.33% - Big Brother 14
-25.00% - Oh Sit! (vs. The Vampire Diaries (Repeat))

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; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.0/5; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 2.7/6; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.4/4.

·In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.8/4; "Late Show," 0.5/2; "Nightline," 0.9/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3.

·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" (1.0/3 with an encore). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.4/3 in 18-49) topped "Late Late Show" (0.2/1 with an encore).

·At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.8/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.2/2 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with 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 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (8/18/11):

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Due to the nature of live sports, Fast Nationals for FOX are approximate. Due to local NFL preseason preemptions, Fast Nationals for CBS are inflated.

FOX (8.36 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #1) was the network to beat on Thursday with its coverage of the "NFL Preseason: Philadelphia vs. Pittsburgh" (8.36 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.0, #T1).

CBS (6.95 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.0, #2) then claimed the silver with its mix of "The Big Bang Theory" (7.30 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3), "Rules of Engagement" (6.50 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3), "Big Brother 13" (7.97 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.0, #T1) and "The Mentalist" (5.99 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T7).

Next up was ABC (5.30 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.5, #3) with its all-original lineup of "Wipeout" (6.70 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T3), "Expedition Impossible" (4.58 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.3, #6) and "Rookie Blue" (4.63 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.2, #T7).

Meanwhile, NBC (2.51 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #4) was out of the hunt with its repeat mix of "Community" (2.17 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.6, #13), "Parks & Recreation" (1.83 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #12), "The Office" (2.51 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9), "30 Rock" (2.45 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T9) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.05 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.9, #11).

And finally, rebroadcasts of "The Vampire Diaries" (1.12 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.4, #14) and "Plain Jane" (0.92 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.3, #15) on The CW (1.02 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #5) closed out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Wipeout (0.0%), Big Brother 13 (-6.3%), Rookie Blue (-14.3%), Expedition Impossible (-18.8%).

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

In Nielsen's 56 metered markets (with Kansas City currently delayed), household results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 2.2/6; CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman," 2.0/5; and ABC's combo of "Nightline," 2.9/7; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 1.3/4 with an encore.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, adult 18-49 results were: "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," 0.7/3; "Late Show," 0.6/3; "Nightline," 0.9/4; and "Jimmy Kimmel Live," 0.5/3 with an encore.

At 12:35 a.m., "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.0/4 in metered-market households) trailed CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (1.1/4 with an encore). In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Late Night" (0.4/3 in 18-49) tied "Late Late Show" (0.4/2 with an encore).

At 1:35 a.m., "Last Call with Carson Daly" averaged a 0.6/3 in metered-market households with an encore and a 0.3/2 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

Source: Nielsen Media Research