WINK-TV

WINK-TV is a television station licensed to Fort Myers, Florida, and serving the Southwest Florida market. The station broadcasts on channel 11 and is primarily affiliated with CBS. Its digital subchannel also carries MyNetworkTV programming and Antenna TV content, giving the WINK operation a broader programming footprint than its primary network affiliation alone. The station is owned by Fort Myers Broadcasting Company, a locally based company controlled by the McBride family. This ownership structure distinguishes WINK-TV from the many American stations owned by large national broadcast groups. WINK-TV began broadcasting on March 18, 1954, becoming the first television station in Southwest Florida and one of the earliest surviving television stations in Florida. Its call letters were inherited from the related WINK radio operation rather than being created as a reference to CBS branding. During its early years, the station carried programming from CBS, NBC, ABC, and DuMont, reflecting the fluid network arrangements common in the first decades of American television. DuMont programming ended when that network ceased operations in 1956, while WINK-TV retained CBS as its principal affiliation. The station benefited from the Federal Communications Commission’s channel-allocation system. Fort Myers lies between the larger television markets of Tampa Bay, South Florida, and the Orlando area, leaving limited room for additional VHF assignments. Channel 11 therefore provided WINK-TV with a strong over-the-air signal across a wide and geographically dispersed region. Before cable television became widely available, WINK-TV was reportedly the only local station that could provide a clear signal to many viewers outside the immediate Fort Myers area. The station has identified primarily through its call letters since the 1980s, a strategy supported by the high penetration of cable and satellite television in Southwest Florida. WINK-TV’s news operation is central to its identity and competitive position. The station produces extensive local newscasts and maintains bureaus serving Charlotte County and Collier County. Its coverage includes local government, weather, hurricanes, growth, tourism, transportation, education, and sports. Fort Myers’ long-standing role as a spring-training location for the Boston Red Sox has also created a recurring sports-news connection with WBZ-TV in Boston, another CBS affiliate. WINK-TV has historically competed closely with WBBH-TV for the top position in local news ratings, after alternating market leadership with that station during earlier decades. The station entered high-definition broadcasting in 2007 and completed its transition to digital-only transmission in February 2009. Its digital service has changed over time, including weather programming, a standard-definition simulcast, and later Antenna TV and MyNetworkTV. WINK-TV also provides services to other stations associated with Fort Myers Broadcasting and Sun Broadcasting under a shared-services arrangement, including WFTX-TV, WXCW, WUVF-LD, and WANA-LD. These relationships give the locally owned operation a wider presence in the regional broadcast ecosystem. Hurricane Ian demonstrated both the importance and vulnerability of WINK-TV’s infrastructure. Storm-surge flooding affected the station’s downtown Fort Myers facility on September 28, 2022, taking WINK-TV and related services off the air. The station resumed broadcasting from a temporary setup at its transmitter site two days later and returned to its principal facility after repairs. The flooding subsequently encouraged the company to pursue a less flood-prone broadcast center. Fort Myers Broadcasting purchased a building in the Gateway area in 2023, renovated it, and later relocated operations there. WINK-TV remains an active CBS affiliate and a major local-news institution in Southwest Florida.

WINK-TV signed on March 18, 1954, as the first television station in Southwest Florida. It was established by the McBride family, whose business interests included the WINK radio station and the transportation empire associated with Mickey McBride. The television station adopted the WINK call letters already used by its radio counterpart. Although the letters later became strongly associated with the station’s CBS identity, they predated the modern prominence of the CBS eye logo and were not originally chosen as a CBS reference. In its formative period, WINK-TV carried programming from the principal American television networks of the era. It was a primary CBS affiliate but also aired selected NBC and ABC programming, as well as DuMont material. DuMont disappeared from the schedule after the network shut down in 1956. WINK-TV continued to operate as the region’s principal CBS outlet while Southwest Florida’s television market developed. WBBH-TV joined the market in 1968 and initially took the NBC affiliation. The two stations continued to share ABC programming until WEVU-TV began broadcasting in 1974. The station’s early reach was strengthened by the FCC’s VHF allocation plan. Fort Myers was situated between established broadcast centers in Tampa Bay, South Florida, and central Florida, creating a geographic gap in which only a limited number of VHF licenses could be assigned. WINK-TV secured the channel 11 allocation and enjoyed a powerful regional position. Its signal reached communities beyond the immediate Fort Myers area at a time when UHF reception was more difficult and cable systems were not yet widespread. WINK-TV consequently became an especially important source of local television for Southwest Florida viewers. By the mid-1980s, the station was using its call letters as its principal public identity. That approach reflected the importance of cable and satellite distribution in the market, where many households relied on subscription television for reliable reception. WINK-TV invested heavily in local news and developed a sustained rivalry with WBBH-TV. WBBH briefly overtook WINK in the 1970s, but WINK regained a leading position in the 1980s and remained in a long-running contest with WBBH for local-news leadership. WINK-TV modernized its technical operation in the twenty-first century. It launched high-definition broadcasting on October 20, 2007, and became digital-only in February 2009. The station’s digital multiplex has carried several services over time. A weather service was replaced by a standard-definition simulcast, and that simulcast was later replaced by Antenna TV. In March 2019, the second digital channel began carrying Antenna TV along with MyNetworkTV programming, restoring local over-the-air access to MyNetworkTV after a previous Southwest Florida outlet ceased operation. The news department has expanded its schedule and geographic reporting. A weekday 4 p.m. newscast was introduced in May 2011, followed by weekend morning programming and other schedule adjustments. The weekday morning broadcast was later extended to begin at 4:30 a.m., while news produced for related station WXCW further broadened the operation’s reach. WINK-TV maintains bureaus in Charlotte County and Collier County and covers the Boston Red Sox during spring training in coordination with WBZ-TV. Hurricane Ian severely affected the station on September 28, 2022. Flooding from storm surge entered the downtown Fort Myers studio area, interrupting WINK-TV, WXCW, and associated radio operations. WINK-TV restored service from a makeshift studio at its transmitter site on September 30, temporarily using WXCW’s main channel to carry the WINK schedule. Normal operations resumed after repairs. The event led Fort Myers Broadcasting to seek a facility with lower flood exposure. The company bought a building on Corporate Lakes Drive in the Gateway area in 2023 and renovated it for broadcast use. WINK-TV later moved its operations to the new facility. Fort Myers Broadcasting also supplies selected operational services to other regional stations, including Fox affiliate WFTX-TV, CW affiliate WXCW, and low-power stations WUVF-LD and WANA-LD through a shared-services relationship with Sun Broadcasting. WINK-TV remains a locally owned, active CBS affiliate whose principal public role is regional news, weather, emergency information, and community broadcasting.

1. 2023Gateway facility acquired

   Fort Myers Broadcasting purchases a building in the Gateway area for a less flood-prone broadcast center.

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2. 2022Hurricane Ian disrupts station operations

   Storm-surge flooding damages the downtown facility, prompting temporary broadcasting from the transmitter site.

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3. 2019Antenna TV and MyNetworkTV launch on WINK-DT2

   The second digital subchannel begins carrying Antenna TV and MyNetworkTV programming.

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4. 2009Digital-only transmission

   The station completes its transition away from analog broadcasting.

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5. 2007High-definition broadcasting begins

   WINK-TV becomes the first Southwest Florida station to broadcast in high definition.

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6. 1974WEVU-TV launches

   The launch of WEVU-TV ends the period in which WINK-TV and WBBH-TV shared ABC programming.

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7. 1968WBBH-TV enters the market

   WBBH-TV signs on in Southwest Florida and takes the NBC affiliation, creating WINK-TV’s principal long-term local-news rivalry.

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8. 1956DuMont affiliation ends

   The station loses DuMont programming after the network ceases operations while continuing as a primary CBS affiliate.

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9. 1954WINK-TV signs on

   WINK-TV begins broadcasting from Fort Myers as the first television station in Southwest Florida.

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A locally owned, news-led CBS affiliate emphasizing regional reporting, weather, hurricane coverage, and community service across Southwest Florida.

• WINK NewsLocal news1954

  WINK-TV’s local news operation covers Southwest Florida through regularly scheduled newscasts, breaking-news reports, investigative stories, weather coverage, public-affairs reporting, and community features. The operation maintains reporting presence in Fort Myers, Charlotte County, and Collier County and competes directly with WBBH-TV for local-news audiences.

• CBS programmingNetwork television1954

  The primary WINK-TV service carries CBS network programming for the Fort Myers–Naples market. Although the station aired programming from several networks during its early history, CBS has remained its principal network relationship.

• WINK-DT2Digital multicast television2019

  WINK-TV’s second digital channel carries Antenna TV programming and MyNetworkTV programming during the service’s scheduled weeknight hours, with Antenna TV filling other time periods.

• WINK weather and emergency coverageWeather and public safety information1954

  Weather forecasting and emergency reporting are central parts of WINK-TV’s regional service. The station’s location on Florida’s Gulf Coast makes hurricane preparation, storm tracking, evacuation information, and post-storm reporting important elements of its programming.

• 2022Pursue a less flood-prone broadcast facilityStrategy

  Hurricane Ian storm surge flooded the station’s downtown Fort Myers facility and interrupted broadcasting.

  What changed. Fort Myers Broadcasting purchased and renovated a building in the Gateway area for broadcast operations.

  Aftermath. The station relocated operations to the newer facility after the renovation, reducing reliance on the flood-affected downtown site.

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• 2019Restore MyNetworkTV through WINK-DT2Product launch

  Southwest Florida had lost local access to MyNetworkTV after the closure of a former cable-exclusive outlet.

  What changed. WINK-TV added MyNetworkTV programming to its second digital subchannel, which also carried Antenna TV outside MyNetworkTV’s scheduled periods.

  Aftermath. The arrangement restored an over-the-air MyNetworkTV service in the market while giving the subchannel a full schedule through Antenna TV.

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• 2023Fort Myers Broadcasting develops a new Gateway broadcast facility

  Following the flooding of the downtown facility, the company purchased and renovated a building in Fort Myers’ Gateway area for broadcast operations.

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• 2022WINK-TV resumes broadcasting after Hurricane Ian flooding

  Storm surge from Hurricane Ian flooded the station’s Fort Myers facility and interrupted broadcasts. WINK-TV returned to the air from a temporary transmitter-site studio two days later.

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• 2011WINK-TV expands local news programming after the end of The Oprah Winfrey Show

  The station launched a weekday 4 p.m. newscast and expanded weekend morning news programming as part of schedule changes following the conclusion of The Oprah Winfrey Show.

  Product launch
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• 2007WINK-TV begins broadcasting in high definition

  WINK-TV became the first television station in Southwest Florida to begin broadcasting in high definition.

  Product generation
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1. WINK-TV
2. WINK News