WBFS-TV

WBFS-TV

Company type	Television station
Industry	Broadcasting
Founded	1984
Headquarters	Miami / Doral, Florida , United States
Area served	Miami metropolitan area
Owner	CBS News and Stations
Parent	CBS Corporation

WBFS-TV (channel 33) is a television station located in Miami, Florida, operating as an affiliate of The CW. It is owned by CBS News and Stations alongside WFOR-TV (channel 4), a CBS owned-and-operated outlet; both stations share production facilities in Doral, Florida. The transmitter for WBFS-TV is situated in Andover, Florida.

WBFS-TV began broadcasting in 1984 as the first successful full-power channel 33 station in Miami and was the flagship station of the Grant Broadcasting System. Grant's assertive programming strategy and promotional efforts positioned WBFS as a formidable independent station, though these aggressive tactics contributed to Grant entering receivership within three years. Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, control of the station passed to Grant’s creditors until its acquisition by the Paramount Stations Group in 1994. The following year, WBFS joined the ranks of UPN affiliates. When The CW launched in 2006, WBFS was not selected for affiliation and instead partnered with MyNetworkTV until 2022. After operating independently for two years, it assumed Miami’s CW affiliation in September 2024. Since 2001, WBFS has consolidated its operations with WFOR, with WFOR occasionally producing newscasts for WBFS.

Unrealized construction permits

Although channel 33 was designated for Miami during the initial UHF allocations in 1952, it remained unutilized for more than three decades. Among the earliest applicants was Miami Biscayne Television Corporation, which secured a construction permit but never proceeded with building the station. During the 1960s, multiple contenders including Gem Broadcasting—proposing Spanish-language programming—Supreme Broadcasting, and Gateway Television Corporation (led by former FCC attorney Vincent B. Welch) vied for the permit. Gateway was granted the permit in 1964 after other applicants withdrew but relinquished it by 1966.

Following this, Hialeah-based food processor Budd Mayer applied to operate subscription television on channel 33 using the Telemeter system. Gold Coast received a construction authorization in March 1967; however, no broadcasting commenced. Meanwhile, beginning in 1974, WCIX (channel 6), which experienced signal limitations in Broward County, utilized a translator on channel 33.

"Florida's Super Station"

In 1977, Miami STV Inc., owned by Milwaukee’s Block family, submitted an application to the FCC to develop channel 33 with plans to offer subscription television through SelecTV. The FCC approved a construction permit in July 1980, favoring Miami STV over a competing high-power satellite proposal from WCIX. Miami STV intended to operate a hybrid model combining advertising-supported content with subscription services similar to WKID on channel 51.

The call sign WBFS-TV was assigned in February 1983. Later that year in November, the Shlenker Group—owners of Houston’s KTXH and Fort Worth’s KTXA—filed to acquire a controlling interest from Miami STV for $46,250. This acquisition funded station construction and led to abandoning subscription television plans. By late 1983, WCIX discontinued its channel 33 translator.

Broadcasting from the newly constructed Guy Gannett tower near US 441, WBFS-TV commenced operations on December 9, 1984, utilizing former brewery facilities located in Miami Gardens. Ownership soon transferred to Milton Grant who incorporated WBFS-TV into his Grant Broadcasting System of independent stations. Distinct from typical independents that heavily depended on movie broadcasts, Grant invested aggressively in acquiring syndicated shows well ahead of schedule for Miami’s competitive market.

The station marketed itself with a powerful five million-watt transmitter reaching as far as West Palm Beach and adopted polished branding under the slogan "Florida's Super Station." Its launch campaign reportedly involved $2 million spent over a two-month period. Additionally, WBFS-TV broadcast games featuring Miami Hurricanes football and men's basketball teams.

Grant bankruptcy and Combined ownership

In early 1985, the Grant Broadcasting System divested its stations in Fort Worth and Houston, redirecting its focus toward launching new outlets in larger markets such as Philadelphia (WGBS-TV) and Chicago (WGBO-TV). By March 1986, WBFS had reached parity with WCIX as the leading independent station in South Florida. Nevertheless, the financial burden from elevated promotional spending and increasing programming expenses placed significant strain on these newer stations. Rival broadcasters countered Grant's bidding efforts, diminishing his influence within the market. When television advertising revenues declined, the heavily indebted Grant-Shlenker partnership encountered financial challenges. Syndicators demanded payments from an undercapitalized group, resulting in some programs being withdrawn from WBFS-TV as syndicators threatened to transfer their content to competing channels.

On December 8, 1986, all three Grant stations sought protection under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Philadelphia, which temporarily shielded them from syndicator claims. Although WBFS-TV was the most financially stable of the trio, it still incurred a pre-tax loss of $6.54 million in 1986, compared to $9.72 million in Philadelphia and $13.76 million in Chicago. At one point, a syndicator even submitted a rival application opposing WBFS-TV’s license renewal as a strategic move during bankruptcy proceedings.

In March 1987, the bankruptcy court permitted Grant to continue operating the stations through July by utilizing cash on hand and accounts receivable, while rejecting creditors’ attempts to seize control or mandate sales. On July 7, Grant consented to enter receivership, transferring authority over the company and its three stations to television program suppliers and bondholders under a reorganization plan designed to repay $420 million in debt by 1995; following repayment, the stations were slated for sale. This restructuring plan was filed in October 1987 and received court approval by March 1988. Subsequently, in July 1988, Combined Broadcasting—a creditor-led entity—assumed ownership of Grant and its stations.

Under Combined Broadcasting’s stewardship, WBFS maintained strong performance. It became the broadcast home for the NBA’s expansion team Miami Heat in 1988, secured rights to air 50 games of the Florida Marlins (MLB) during the 1992 season, and televised 10 away games of the Florida Panthers (NHL) in 1993.

In 1993, Combined placed WBFS and WGBO on the market with an asking price of $90 million for both properties. Potential buyers included Chris-Craft Industries and Renaissance Communications—the latter owning rival independent station WDZL—which aimed to merge programming assets; however, Combined later withdrew both stations from sale within that year. Early in 1994, WGBO was sold to Univision for $30 million, at a time when Univision’s programming lineup was not yet fully available in Chicago. In April 1994, Combined entered into an affiliation agreement for WBFS-TV with The WB, a network scheduled to launch in January 1995.

Sale to Paramount and affiliation with UPN

In 1994, Combined Broadcasting agreed to sell WBFS-TV along with WGBS-TV to Paramount Stations Group. Paramount declared that these stations would become affiliates of the newly created United Paramount Network (UPN), established through a joint venture with Chris-Craft; WBFS-TV aligned with UPN while WDZL affiliated with The WB. Although the transaction did not close until nearly a year later—pending Paramount’s divestiture of Philadelphia’s WTXF—WBFS officially joined UPN at its January 16, 1995 debut.

As UPN expanded its programming slate, several prominent sports franchises departed. The Miami Heat—who had returned to WBFS-TV in 1993—shifted their broadcasts to WAMI-TV (channel 69) in 1998, followed by the Florida Marlins relocating coverage in 1999.

With Paramount’s parent company Viacom merging with CBS in 2000, WBFS became a sister station to CBS-owned WFOR-TV. Subsequently, WBFS moved operations into WFOR-TV’s Doral studios; along with West Palm Beach’s WTVX, these stations were overseen by Steve Mauldin, who had been WFOR-TV’s general manager since 1998. Despite this consolidation effort, revenue figures remained stagnant or declined across all three outlets, with WBFS-TV’s share of Miami market revenue falling from 8.7% to 7.3% between 2001 and 2006.

Following consolidation, WBFS-TV has intermittently aired CBS content to supplement WFOR-TV’s news and weather broadcasts as well as preseason games for the Miami Dolphins, for which WFOR holds broadcast rights.

Shift to MyNetworkTV, autonomy, and The CW

On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Time Warner's Warner Bros. Entertainment division declared their intention to discontinue UPN and The WB, merging select programming to launch The CW. Twelve CBS-owned UPN stations became founding affiliates of The CW; however, WBFS-TV was excluded due to an existing long-term affiliation agreement involving 16 Tribune Broadcasting stations, including WBZL (formerly WDZL, later WSFL).

To accommodate stations left out of The CW lineup—including its own—News Corporation introduced MyNetworkTV on February 22, 2006. Initially, WBFS-TV was set to operate as an independent station, but by July, CBS affiliated WBFS-TV and two additional stations with MyNetworkTV.

By 2023, WBFS discontinued MyNetworkTV programming and transitioned to an independent status. Subsequently, CBS announced that WBFS would return to The CW on September 1, 2024, as part of a comprehensive agreement with Nexstar Media Group, which became the majority owner of the network in 2022. This arrangement also involved co-owned WKBD-TV in Detroit, which had ceased carrying CW content a year prior. WBFS replaced WSFL after Scripps-owned CW affiliations were not renewed.

News broadcasts

WBFS-TV debuted its initial news segments in 1993 with prime time news updates produced by WTVJ.

Following the Viacom-CBS merger in 2001 and the events of September 11, WBFS began airing a nightly 10 p.m. newscast sourced from WFOR-TV, becoming the third prime time news provider in the market alongside WSVN and WB affiliate WBZL. This newscast expanded to a full hour in 2003. In 2004, WBFS incorporated a two-hour extension of WFOR's weekday morning newscast from 7 to 9 a.m., replacing paid programming and competing against WSVN's Today in Florida. Due to budgetary constraints, the morning show was discontinued on October 17, 2008, along with weekend newscasts and staff reductions. The 10 p.m. newscast ended in September 2011.

In July 2022, WBFS reintroduced a prime time newscast at 9 p.m., adopting the CBS News Now format. After phasing out the Now format in 2023, the station launched a locally produced 9 p.m. newscast anchored by Jim Berry and Najahe Sherman. A morning newscast airing from 7 to 8 a.m. was reinstated in January 2024.

Sports coverage

In 2020, Inter Miami CF collaborated with WFOR-TV and WBFS to broadcast regional matches locally. However, all local Major League Soccer television rights concluded after the 2022 season due to MLS securing a decade-long $2.5 billion agreement with Apple TV+, which shifted match broadcasts exclusively to that platform. In 2025, WBFS reached an agreement with the Miami Marlins to simulcast fifteen Major League Baseball games.

Subchannels

WBFS-TV's transmitter is located in Andover, Florida. The station's digital multiplex includes:

WBFS-TV subchannels

Channel	Resolution	Aspect Ratio	Identifier	Programming
33.1	1080i	16:9	WBFS-TV	The CW
33.2	480i		WBFSTV2	Movies!
33.3	480i		WBFSTV3	Charge!
33.4	480i		WBFSTV4	Comet
33.5	480i		WBFSTV5	Story Television
33.6	480i		WBFSTV6	Roar
33.7	480i		WBFSTV7	MeTV Toons

Analog-to-digital transition

On June 12, 2009, WBFS-TV discontinued its analog transmission on UHF channel 33 in compliance with the nationwide digital television conversion mandate. The station's digital broadcast remains on its pre-transition UHF channel 32, while continuing to use virtual channel 33.