nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, september 22, 2012)

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

NBC (6.02 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.9, #1) took home top honors with its coverage of "College Football: Michigan at Notre Dame" (6.02 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.9, #1).

ABC (4.36 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.7, #2) then had to settle for second place with its broadcast of "College Football: Clemson at Florida State" (4.36 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.7, #2).

Next up was CBS (4.93 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) with encores of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (4.40 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #6), "Criminal Minds" (5.18 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4) and "48 Hours Mystery" (5.24 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3).

And finally, "College Football: K-State at Oklahoma" (2.83 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4) on FOX (2.83 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) closed out the evening.

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

·"Saturday Night Live," with host Joseph Gordon-Levitt and musical guest Mumford & Sons (5.0/12 in metered-market households), dominated its time period. In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 3.0 rating, 13 share in adults 18-49. Versus the same night last year, the September 22 "SNL" is up 11 percent in the Local People Meters (3.0 vs. 2.7) and versus the prior week, "SNL" is up 7 percent (3.0 vs. 2.8).

·"Saturday Night Live" was the #1 telecast of the night on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox both in 18-49 rating in the Local People Meters and in metered-market household rating, outscoring all primetime programs on those networks.

[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 (9/24/11):

ABC (6.37 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1) was still the network to beat on Saturday with its coverage of "Saturday Night College Football" (6.37 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1).

The silver then went to CBS (4.62 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #2) with encores of "Person of Interest" (3.94 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T5), "Unforgettable" (4.95 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) and the season premiere of "48 Hours Mystery" (4.97 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.2, #2).

Next up was FOX (2.41 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with a new "Cops" (2.89 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T5) followed by repeats of "Cops" (3.30 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3), "American Dad" (1.70 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T9) and "The Cleveland Show" (1.77 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7).

And finally, repeats of "Harry's Law" (3.99 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #11), "Prime Suspect" (4.82 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T9) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.72 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7) on NBC (4.51 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) rounded out the evening.

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

"Saturday Night Live" (5.0/13 in metered-market households), hosted by Alec Baldwin with musical guest Radiohead, dominated its time period, delivering the #1 rating of the night ahead of all primetime telecasts on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.6 rating, 12 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 telecast of the night ahead of all primetime programs on CBS, NBC or Fox.

Source: Nielsen Media Research