[Calderyon]

'Big Brother' ties weakest premiere ever

Maybe CBS should put the housemates under a dome.

Veteran summer reality series Big Brother tied its weakest start in the show’s history Wednesday night. The 8 p.m. launch of the show’s 15th edition had 6.3 million viewers and a 2.1 rating among adults 18-49, down 19 percent from last year and matching the show’s all-time debut low from 2008. Meanwhile the grandly titled The American Baking Competition shifted to 9 p.m. and was unchanged this week with 5 million viewers and a 1.2 rating.

Big Brother (here’s our recap) tied the 8 p.m. edition of MasterChef in the adult demo, but the 9 p.m. hour of the Fox reality show surged to a 2.4 rating and won the night. The Big Brother dip follows CBS having a ratings victory earlier this week with the premiere of summer drama Under the Dome.

Not a good start for this season...