This Feb. 26, 2013 photo released by NBC shows cast member Jason Sudeikis, left, and guest host Kevin Hart during rehearsals for "saturday Night Live," in New York. Hart will host the show on Saturday, March 2, with musical guest Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. (AP Photo/NBC, Dana Edelson)
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This Feb. 26, 2013 photo released by NBC shows cast member Jason Sudeikis, left, and guest host Kevin Hart during rehearsals for "saturday Night Live," in New York. Hart will host the show on Saturday, March 2, with musical guest Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. (AP Photo/NBC, Dana Edelson)
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FILE - This April 19, 2012 file photo shows actress and cast member on "Saturday Night Live," Abby Elliott attending a special screening of "The Lucky One", hosted by The Cinema Society and Men's Health, at the Crosby Street Hotel in New York. Elliott is not returning to “Saturday Night Live.” Her exit was first reported Wednesday, Aug. 15, by the comedy website Splitsider. NBC declined to comment, but a source familiar with casting changes at the show confirmed Elliott's departure. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini, file)
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FILE - This June 2012 file photo released by NBC shows mentors, from left, Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green and Adam Levine on the set of "The Voice," in Los Angeles." New entertainment chief Bob Greenblatt's baby steps strategy of using the successful competition "The Voice" as its centerpiece has helped NBC stand as the only one of the four big broadcasters to have a larger prime-time audience than it had last fall. (AP Photo/NBC, Tyler Golden, file)
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FILE - This Oct. 1, 2011 file photo shows Seth MacFarlane in Los Angeles. NBC announced Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2012, that Seth MacFarlane will host“Saturday Night Live" for its 38th season premiere on Sept. 15. Musical guest will be Frank Ocean. The multitalented MacFarlane created the Fox series “Family Guy” and serves as writer, producer and voice artist on the show. He recently directed his first feature film, “Ted,” and furnished the voice for its teddy-bear title character. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)
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FILE - In this Friday, Aug. 21, 2009, file photo, the NBC logo glows in neon lights among other iconic signs at its headquarters in New York. Comcast said Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2013, that it's buying General Electric's 49 percent stake in the NBCUniversal joint venture for $16.7 billion several years early, as the company takes advantage of low borrowing costs and what CEO Brian Roberts called a "very attractive price." (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
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New York Jets defensive end Quinton Coples (98) knocks the ball away from Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) during the first half of a preseason NFL football game, Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
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A statue dwarfs the chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel where cardinals will gather to elect the new pope during the conclave at the Vatican, Monday, March 11, 2013. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky)
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CORRECTED CAPTION: FILE - This publicity film image released by DreamWorks and Twentieth Century Fox shows Daniel Day-Lewis portraying Abraham Lincoln in the film "Lincoln." The Producers Guild of America announced the motion picture and long-form television nominations for the 24th Annual Producers Awards on Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013, in Los Angeles. The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures included these nominees, "Argo," (Warner Bros.) producers: Ben Affleck, George Clooney, and Grant Heslov; "Beasts of Southern Wild," (Fox Searchlight Pictures) producers: Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey, and Josh Penn; "Lincoln," (Touchstone Pictures) producers: Kathleen Kennedy and Steven Spielberg; among other film producers and productions. (AP Photo/DreamWorks, Twentieth Century Fox, David James, File)
Another long, disappointing week for NBC
NEW YORK (
AP) — Once the cast of
NBC's "Saturday Night Live" was known as the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players." That distinction now seems bitterly ironic for the network.
Last weekend's "Saturday Night Live" with Justin Timberlake had more viewers than anything the network aired in prime time last week. The badly slumping NBC had its lowest prime-time viewership average ever, even counting summer months when TV viewership naturally shrinks.
NBC's most-watched program in prime time was "The Biggest Loser" with 5.9 million people.
Complete "SNL" numbers won't be available until later this week. But based on an overnight sample, the Timberlake show was likely seen by around 8.5 million people.
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ap, nbc, andy samberg, justin timberlake, jimmy fallon, arts_entertainment, weekend, network, average, people, new york, 60 minutes, 2000s american television series, cast, saturday night live, prime time, biggest loser, ge building, distinction, tv viewership, snl, badly slumping nbc, lowest prime-time viewership, prime time players, overnight sample
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