WNBW-DT
WNBW-DT is a Gainesville, Florida television station that began as a local NBC affiliate and later became an outlet for the Roar digital multicast network.
Last updated August 31, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
WNBW-DT is a digital television station serving Gainesville, Florida, on virtual channel 9. The station was created to restore an in-market NBC affiliate to Gainesville, which had lacked a locally based NBC outlet since 1973, when WCJB-TV changed its affiliation from NBC to ABC. Before WNBW-DT launched, Gainesville-area cable systems generally carried NBC programming from stations based in Orlando and Jacksonville, principally WESH and WTLV. The station began broadcasting on December 31, 2008, at 11:30 p.m., under an operating arrangement involving MPS Media and New Age Media. The station's launch was tied to a long-pending construction permit originally associated with an analog channel 29 application. In preparation for the digital station, WGFL ended its analog service on July 28, 2008. WNBW-DT's arrival gave NBC a dedicated local signal in the Gainesville market and enabled the station to seek carriage and enforce the displacement or blackout of out-of-market NBC and syndicated programming when applicable. Cox Communications added the station to its Gainesville-area lineup on channel 9 in January 2009, and began blacking out WESH during NBC programming later that year. Early plans contemplated locally produced newscasts, although the station ultimately relied on a shared news operation rather than developing a large independent newsroom. WNBW-DT operated in a complex ownership and management structure. MPS Media held the station license, while New Age Media was involved in its launch and operation. New Age Media later attempted to sell most of its stations to Sinclair Broadcast Group. A related plan would have transferred WNBW-DT to Cunningham Broadcasting while leaving operational control connected to WGFL, but the application was withdrawn in 2014. Sinclair nevertheless acquired non-license assets associated with the New Age stations and began providing services through a master service agreement. This placed WNBW-DT alongside WGFL, a CBS and MyNetworkTV affiliate, and WYME-CD, an Antenna TV station, as part of a jointly operated Gainesville television cluster. For several years, WNBW-DT participated in the shared GTN News and later CBS 4 News operation. The service provided evening newscasts and news cut-ins connected with the stations' network programming. Sinclair discontinued the locally produced news operation after the final broadcast on May 12, 2023, replacing it with editions of the nationally distributed The National News Desk. The station also underwent a technical channel change during the post-incentive-auction repacking process, moving its physical transmission from channel 9 to channel 8 while retaining virtual channel 9. According to the supplied reference material, the station's programming identity changed on December 10, 2025, when NBC programming moved to WGFL's third digital subchannel and WNBW-DT's main channel began carrying the Roar digital multicast network. The same material states that Sinclair announced an acquisition of WNBW-DT from MPS Media in February 2026 and completed the transaction in April 2026. These later ownership and affiliation developments should be checked against current FCC and station records because they are future-dated relative to many historical descriptions of the station.
History
WNBW-DT was established to provide Gainesville, Florida, with a locally based NBC television service. The market had lost its local NBC affiliation in 1973, when WCJB-TV moved to ABC. For many years afterward, cable viewers in Gainesville and surrounding communities received NBC programming from WESH in Orlando or WTLV in Jacksonville. A construction permit for the eventual station had roots in a 1996 application for analog channel 29 and was approved in 2005. In June 2008, WGFL announced plans for a digital-only station. Construction required WGFL to end its analog service on July 28, 2008. New Age Media launched WNBW-DT late on December 31, 2008, through an arrangement with MPS Media, which had acquired the permit from Pegasus Communications. The station's launch restored a direct local NBC signal and addressed an estimated gap affecting approximately 32,000 Gainesville homes. Cox Communications added WNBW-DT to its cable lineup on January 16, 2009. Later that year, the station began exercising the market protections associated with its NBC affiliation by requiring blackouts of WESH during NBC network programming. The station was initially associated with MPS Media as licensee and New Age Media as operator. In 2013, New Age Media announced plans to sell most of its stations to Sinclair Broadcast Group. The proposed structure included a possible sale of WNBW-DT to Cunningham Broadcasting, with operation continuing alongside WGFL. MPS Media withdrew the WNBW-DT sale application in October 2014. Sinclair then purchased non-license assets connected with the New Age stations and began managing operations through a master service agreement. The Gainesville cluster included WGFL, WNBW-DT, and WYME-CD, with shared facilities on Northwest 80th Boulevard near Interstate 75 and shared transmitter facilities near Newberry. WNBW-DT participated in a shared news operation with WGFL. The service was known as GTN News until 2016 and later as CBS 4 News. It provided evening newscasts at 6 and 11 p.m., together with news cut-ins during the stations' network morning programming. The operation was produced through outside and Sinclair-related facilities rather than a large standalone WNBW newsroom. On May 12, 2023, the stations aired their final locally produced newscast. Sinclair subsequently substituted The National News Desk, a nationally distributed news program. Technically, WNBW-DT retained virtual channel 9 while changing its physical transmission channel from 9 to 8 on May 1, 2020, as part of the nationwide spectrum-repacking process following the FCC incentive auction. The station also carried WYME-CD on one of its digital subchannels. The supplied reference describes a later programming reorganization on December 10, 2025, in which NBC moved to WGFL's third subchannel and WNBW-DT's main stream adopted Roar. It further describes a Sinclair acquisition announced in February 2026 and completed on April 17. Because these events are future-dated in relation to earlier station histories, their current status warrants verification through FCC filings and contemporary station records.
- 2023
Local news operation discontinued
[1]The final locally produced shared newscast aired on May 12.
- 2020
Physical transmission channel changes
[1]WNBW-DT moved its physical broadcast assignment from channel 9 to channel 8 while continuing to use virtual channel 9.
- 2014
Sinclair begins operational services
[1]After the proposed WNBW-DT sale application was withdrawn, Sinclair began operating related New Age stations through a master service agreement.
- 2009
Cable carriage begins
[1]Cox Communications added WNBW-DT to its Gainesville-area lineup on January 16.
- 2008
WNBW-DT begins broadcasting
[1]The station launched on December 31 as a digital NBC affiliate serving Gainesville.
- 2005
Construction permit approved
[1]The permit underlying the later digital station received approval.
- 1996
Original construction-permit application filed
[1]A construction permit associated with the station was originally filed for analog channel 29.
- 1973
Gainesville loses its local NBC affiliate
[1]WCJB-TV changed its affiliation from NBC to ABC, leaving Gainesville dependent on NBC stations from outside the market.
Products and positioning
A local over-the-air television outlet serving Gainesville and nearby north-central Florida communities, initially positioned as the market's dedicated NBC affiliate and later as a digital multicast-network station.
Television station · 2008
WNBW-DT channel 9
The station's primary broadcast service for Gainesville and nearby north-central Florida communities. It launched as a digital NBC affiliate and uses virtual channel 9, despite later moving its physical transmission facility to channel 8 during the FCC spectrum-repacking process.
Television news
Shared Gainesville news service
WNBW-DT and WGFL shared a local news operation branded GTN News until 2016 and CBS 4 News thereafter. The service supplied evening newscasts and news cut-ins, but locally produced broadcasts ended in May 2023.
Digital multicast network · 2025
Roar programming
The supplied reference identifies Roar as the programming service carried on WNBW-DT's main channel after the reported December 2025 affiliation reorganization.
Controversies
2021
Retransmission-consent good-faith dispute
Following an AT&T lawsuit alleging that MPS Media failed to negotiate retransmission consent in good faith for stations associated with the group, the FCC issued a forfeiture order against MPS Media. The stated penalty was $512,288; other owners of Sinclair-managed stations were also named in the litigation.
Brand decisions
2026
Sinclair acquisition of WNBW-DTM&ABackground
The supplied reference states that MPS Media remained the station's owner before the reported transaction.
Action taken
Sinclair announced an acquisition of WNBW-DT and reportedly completed it on April 17.
Aftermath
The reported completion would create a legal duopoly between WNBW-DT and WGFL, but the transaction should be confirmed through current regulatory records.
2025
Move NBC programming to a WGFL subchannelGeneration changeBackground
The supplied reference describes a reorganization of the Gainesville stations' digital programming services.
Action taken
NBC programming moved to WGFL's third subchannel, while WNBW-DT's main channel switched to Roar.
Aftermath
WNBW-DT ceased to be the primary NBC outlet according to the supplied reference.
2023
End locally produced news broadcastsStrategyBackground
WNBW-DT and WGFL had operated a shared local news service.
Action taken
Sinclair discontinued the local operation after the final newscast on May 12 and replaced it with The National News Desk.
Aftermath
The stations no longer carried locally produced evening newscasts, reducing the amount of original Gainesville news programming.
2014
Withdraw the proposed WNBW-DT sale applicationM&ABackground
A proposed transaction would have transferred the station from MPS Media to Cunningham Broadcasting.
Action taken
MPS Media requested dismissal of the sale application, while Sinclair acquired related non-license assets and assumed operational responsibilities.
Aftermath
WNBW-DT remained licensed to MPS Media but operated within a Sinclair-managed Gainesville station group.
2008
Launch a dedicated Gainesville NBC stationProduct launchBackground
Gainesville had lacked an in-market NBC affiliate since 1973 and relied on cable carriage of stations from Orlando and Jacksonville.
Action taken
New Age Media and MPS Media launched WNBW-DT as a digital-only NBC affiliate on December 31.
Aftermath
The station restored a local NBC signal and gained cable carriage in the Gainesville area.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/wnbw-dt · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled