How far has NBC’s regularly scheduled lineup of  prime-time shows sunk?

Well, last week its evening "Nightly News," averaging 9.1 million viewers, beat almost everything offered on NBC’s prime-time schedule, reports David Bauder at the Associated Press.

Excluding “Sunday Night Football” and its preview shows, NBC’s highest-rated show last week was "Law & Order: SVU," which drew 7.3 million viewers, the story says.

Brian Williams, who anchors "Nightly News," has joined the prime-time lineup with his new program "Rock Center" airing on Mondays. But that too is trailing the evening news, with 3.9 million people tuning in last week for Bob Costas’ interview with Jerry Sandusky, the former Penn State assistant football coach charged with sexual abuse, the story points out.

CBS has been dominating the prime-time ratings this season, and had 18 of the top 20 scripted series last week in total viewers.

But among evening news shows, NBC led the way with its 9.1 million average, followed by ABC’s “World News” with 8 million and “CBS Evening News” with 6.8 million.