FOX cruises to easy victory Tuesday

Fast National ratings for Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2008

The return of "House" to FOX gave a big boost to the network's Tuesday fortunes, as well as those of its big bet for the fall.

FOX cruised to a Nielsen win for the night with an 8.5 rating/13 share. CBS was a distant second at 5.2/9. NBC, 4.7/8, came in third. ABC took fourth with a 3.6/6, and The CW trailed with a 2.0/3.

The adults 18-49 demographic also went to FOX, which drew a 5.3 rating -- nearly double that of second-place NBC's 2.7. ABC and CBS tied for third at 2.0, and The CW came in at 1.4.

"House" began its fifth season with an 8.8/14 for FOX at 8 p.m. An "NCIS" repeat earned a 6.4/10 for CBS. The premiere of "The Biggest Loser: Families," 4.9/8, put NBC in third. "Wipeout" was fourth for ABC. The CW's "90210" delivered a 2.3/4, on par with last week's episode.

FOX stayed on top at 9 p.m. with "Fringe," 8.2/13, which, with the help of its lead-in, gained about 4 million viewers over its premiere last week. Hour two of "The Biggest Loser," 5.3/8, moved NBC into second. The finale of "Big Brother 10," 4.9/8, finished third for CBS. ABC stayed in fourth with the conclusion of "Wipeout," 3.4/5, and a "Primetime" special on UFOs, 3.2/5. "Privileged" finished the night for The CW.

At 10 p.m., CBS' "Without a Trace" rerun led the way with a 4.3/8. ABC's "Primetime" and NBC's "Law & Order: SVU" each scored a 4.0/7, with ABC grabbing a few more total viewers.

Ratings information is taken from fast national data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are preliminary and subject to change.