A generation after it was written, the Elvis Costello song “Watching the Detectives” still sums up America’s viewing habits. Police shows dominate the most popular programs. Nine of the 25 most watched shows in the week ending Oct. 26 were CBS police procedurals. The number would probably be higher if the week didn’t include the World Series.

Everybody knows how popular the “CSI” franchise is, but “The Mentalist” is clearly the most-watched new show of the season. “NCIS” and “Criminal Minds,” series that generate little critical “buzz” and few adulatory articles, are ranked third and eighth, respectively. Those shows aren’t hip, but viewers love them.

So it’s little wonder why NBC has returned “Law & Order” (9 p.m., NBC) to its traditional perch and created, with “Life” and “Knight Rider,” an all-cop Wednesday.

In a clear sign of NBC’s sagging fortunes, the very ripe “Law & Order: SVU” remains its most-watched series. But it does not even crack the top-30 list.

Tonight’s “Law & Order” may not be ripped from the headlines, but it does involve a beating death of a stockbroker. His sudden demise leads to evidence of a public fighting ring and a series of botched legal maneuvers that incite angry citizens to pursue justice by extra-legal means. Series veteran Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) seems less than steady in this episode. Desperate to win re-election, he stakes out a radical prosecution strategy that provokes rebellion in his ranks.

¢ The 90-minute film “Medal of Honor” (8 p.m., PBS, check local listings) traces the history of the military’s highest decoration and relates the stories of the men who earned it.

It’s interesting to learn that the Founding Fathers discouraged the issuance of military medals, linking them to the pageantry and pomp of European royalty. But the carnage of the Civil War changed military minds. Early in its history, the Medal of Honor was handed out rather indiscriminately. Only after World War I did the military declare that winners had to demonstrate extraordinary courage and put their own lives in peril to save comrades or advance a mission. For that reason, many have been awarded posthumously, often to heroes who fell on a grenade to shield their fellow soldiers. Only 3,473 Medals of Honor have been awarded to date, and a handful of those men and their stories are featured in “Medal of Honor.”

Tonight’s other highlights

¢ Halloween can be murder on “Knight Rider” (7 p.m., NBC).

¢ A murder site appears to have been an art project on “Bones” (7 p.m., Fox).

¢ Murder stalks a table set for two on “Life” (8 p.m., NBC).

¢ The new quarterback receives a hazy welcome on “Friday Night Lights” (8 p.m., Direct TV Ch. 101).

¢ Witness protection becomes a must on “CSI: NY” (9 p.m., CBS).

¢ Karen has big news and wants Nick to deliver it on “Dirty Sexy Money” (9 p.m., ABC).

¢ The gang on “Prototype This” (9 p.m., Discovery) tries to devise an all-terrain vehicle based on legs and not wheels.

Cult choice

A music scene emerges in England’s Manchester in the 2002 musical drama “24 Hour Party People” (8 p.m., IFC).