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| Channels | |
| Branding |
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| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| Operator | New Age Media, LLC viaLMA; certain services provided bySinclair Broadcast Group |
| WGFL,WYME-CD | |
| History | |
First air date | December 31, 2008 (16 years ago) (2008-12-31) |
Former channel number(s) | Digital: 9 (VHF, 2008–2020) |
Call sign meaning | NBC in Western Florida |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 83965 |
| ERP | 65 kW |
| HAAT | 260 m (853 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 29°37′47.7″N82°34′24″W / 29.629917°N 82.57333°W /29.629917; -82.57333 (WNBW-DT) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | mycbs4 |
WNBW-DT (channel 9) is atelevision station inGainesville, Florida, United States, affiliated withNBC. It is owned by MPS Media, which maintains alocal marketing agreement (LMA) with New Age Media, owner ofHigh Springs–licensed dualCBS/MyNetworkTV affiliateWGFL (channel 28) andlow-power,Class AAntenna TV affiliateWYME-CD (channel 45), for the provision of certain services. All three stations, in turn, are operated under a master service agreement by theSinclair Broadcast Group. The stations share studios on Northwest 80th Boulevard (alongI-75/SR 93) in Gainesville; WNBW's transmitter is located on Southwest 30th Avenue nearNewberry.
WNBW-DT began broadcasting on the final day of 2008 and was the first in-market NBC affiliate serving Gainesville since 1973, with NBC affiliates fromOrlando andJacksonville carried on cable serving as the primary source of the network's programming for the city. MPS Media, a virtual duopoly partner of New Age Media, owned the station and contracted with New Age to operate it. In 2014, Sinclair began providing many operational services for the New Age stations in lieu of an attempted purchase of most of the company.
In June 2008, WGFL announced that it would be launching a new digital-only television station on September 8, utilizing a construction permit that had been filed for in 1996 as analog channel 29 and approved in 2005. Construction required the early termination of analog service from WGFL on July 28.[2]
New Age Media officially launched WNBW-DT on December 31, 2008, at 11:30 p.m. through an LMA with MPS Media, New Age's typical partner in such projects, which purchased the permit from its original owner, Pegasus Communications.[3][4] On that date, WNBW began regular programming, bringing local NBC service back to Gainesville sinceWCJB-TV switched its affiliation from the network toABC in 1973.[4] Cable homes in the station's service area had been served byWESH fromOrlando andWTLV fromJacksonville; MPS estimated 32,000 homes in Gainesville went unserved by the network prior to launching WNBW. It holds rights to enforceblackouts on out-of-market stations carrying NBC and syndicated programming such as WESH in Orlando, which originally served Gainesville and Ocala as thede facto affiliate.[3]Cox Communications began offering WNBW to Gainesville-area cable subscribers on channel 9 beginning January 16, 2009,[5] and it began blacking out WESH during network programming that July.[6] Originally, WNBW indicated it would eventually air some local programming including local newscasts by the end of 2009, a requirement of its affiliation agreement.[4][7]
On September 25, 2013, New Age Media announced that it would sell most of its stations, including WGFL and WMYG-LP, to theSinclair Broadcast Group. Concurrently, MPS Media planned to sell WNBW-DT toCunningham Broadcasting; the station would have continued to be operated by WGFL.[8][9] On October 31, 2014, MPS Media requested the dismissal of its application to sell WNBW-DT;[10] the next day, Sinclair purchased the non-license assets of the stations it planned to buy from New Age Media and began operating them through a master service agreement.[11][12]
On July 28, 2021, the FCC issued a forfeiture order stemming from a lawsuit against MPS Media. The lawsuit, filed byAT&T, alleged that MPS Media failed to negotiate for retransmission consent in good faith for the stations. Owners of other Sinclair-managed stations, such asDeerfield Media, were also named in the lawsuit. MPS was ordered to pay a fine of $512,288.[13]
WGFL and WNBW simulcastCBS 4 News, which produced 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts for the Gainesville area and cut-ins during the stations' respective national morning shows. The news service was known asGTN News until 2016 and produced byIndependent News Network inDavenport, Iowa. The newscasts were produced at Sinclair'sWPEC inWest Palm Beach.
On May 12, 2023, the stations aired one final newscast, as Sinclair discontinued the local news operation. Both stations now run editions of Sinclair's nationally syndicated newscastThe National Desk in place of locally-produced newscasts.[14]
The station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | WNBW-DT | NBC |
| 9.2 | 480i | Charge! | Charge! | |
| 9.3 | Comet | Comet | ||
| 9.4 | Antenna | Antenna TV (WYME-CD) |
Until June 3, 2015, WYME-CD did not air a digital signal, as with the case of many Class A stations. WYME-CD is also broadcast as WNBW's fourth subchannel.
As part of therepacking process following the2016–2017 FCC incentive auction, WNBW shifted from transmitting on channel 9 to channel 8 on May 1, 2020.
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