nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, september 1, 2013)

Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

CBS (6.493 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1) kicked off September on top with its mix of "60 Minutes" (8.212 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4), "Big Brother 15" (5.984 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1), "Unforgettable" (6.730 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4) and "The Mentalist" (5.049 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T8).

FOX (2.128 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) then claimed the silver with its repeat lineup of "American Dad" (1.276 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T12), "The Simpsons" (1.779 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #11), another "The Simpsons" (2.524 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T4), "Bob's Burgers" (2.042 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T8), "Family Guy" (2.525 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T2) and another "Family Guy" (2.621 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T2).

Next up was NBC (3.148 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #3) with a rebroadcast of "America's Got Talent" (2.315 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T12) followed by the two-hour special "TV's Funniest of the Funniest: A Paley Center for Media Special" (3.981 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #7).

And finally, ABC (2.190 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.4, #4) closed out the evening with its combination of "The Chew Presents ABC's Primetime Fall Preview Special" (2.337 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #14), "Secret Millionaire" (3.754 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T8) and "MDA Show of Strength Telethon" (1.336 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.2, #15).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
-11.11% - Secret Millionaire
-16.67% - Unforgettable
-21.74% - Big Brother 15

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+150.00% - Unforgettable (vs. The Good Wife (Repeat))
+100.00% - Secret Millionaire (vs. Once Upon a Time (Repeat))
+12.50% - TV's Funniest of the Funniest: A Paley Center for Media Special (vs. America's Got Talent (Repeat))
+5.88% - Big Brother 15
0.00% - The Chew Presents ABC's Primetime Fall Preview Special
-60.00% - MDA Show of Strength Telethon (vs. TV's Most Dynamic Duos: Presented by The Paley Center for Media)

Here are the highlights of the 16 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (9/2/12):

FOX (2.41 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1) was the top demo draw on Sunday despite its all-repeat lineup of "American Dad" (1.38 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.6, #12), "The Cleveland Show" (1.56 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.7, #11), "The Simpsons" (2.42 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #5), another "The Simpsons" (2.63 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #4), "Family Guy" (3.21 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T2) and another "Family Guy" (3.27 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #T2).

CBS (4.88 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) then claimed the silver with its combination of "60 Minutes" (6.78 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7), "Big Brother 14" (5.52 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.7, #1), "The Good Wife" (3.07 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T14) and "The Mentalist" (4.18 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7).

Next up was NBC (3.10 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3) adn its mix of "Dateline NBC" (3.25 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #6), "America's Got Talent" (3.14 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7) and another "America's Got Talent" (2.90 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T7).

And finally, ABC (2.34 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #4) didn't get a boost from its lineup of "The Chew Presents ABC's Primetime Fall Preview Special" (2.37 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T14), a repeat of "Once Upon a Time" (1.90 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T14) and the two-hour special "TV's Most Dynamic Duos: Presented by The Paley Center for Media" (2.54 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.5, #13).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
-32.00% - Big Brother 14
-40.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. 8/19/12)

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+28.57% - Dateline NBC
-26.09% - Big Brother 14
-54.55% - TV's Most Dynamic Duos: Presented by The Paley Center for Media (vs. 20/20: The Sixth Sense (Repeat))
-55.56% - The Chew Presents ABC's Primetime Fall Preview Special (vs. America's Funniest Home Videos (Repeat))

Source: Nielsen Media Research