WGBS-TV

WGBS-TV

Company type	Television broadcaster
Industry	Broadcasting
Founded	1953
Defunct	1957
Fate	Ceased broadcasting; assets sold to Public Service Television (National Airlines)
Headquarters	Miami, Florida , United States
Products	Television broadcasting (NBC affiliate)

WGBS-TV operated as a television broadcaster on channel 23 in Miami, Florida, between 1953 and 1957. Initially launched as WFTL-TV in Fort Lauderdale, the station moved to Miami after being acquired by Storer Broadcasting in late 1954, merging with an existing Miami construction permit.

Throughout most of its tenure, channel 23 functioned as the NBC affiliate for South Florida. Nevertheless, its position weakened due to competition from VHF stations, which eroded the market share of UHF broadcasters. In 1956, the new NBC affiliate WCKT (channel 7) commenced operations in Miami. WGBS-TV discontinued broadcasting in 1957 and sold its facilities to National Airlines, which prepared to start WPST-TV (channel 10). Storer maintained ownership of the UHF permit and subsequently sold it to Coastal Broadcasting System, which utilized it in 1967 to establish WAJA-TV—the forerunner of today’s WLTV—on channel 23.

Foundation in Fort Lauderdale

Following the Federal Communications Commission’s lifting of its television application freeze in 1948, channels 17 and 23 were assigned to Fort Lauderdale. On July 30, 1952, the FCC awarded channel 23 to Gore Publishing Company, proprietors of radio station WFTL (1400 AM) and the Fort Lauderdale Daily News. By January 1953, studios had been built downtown with an intended launch date set for April. The station’s antenna was installed on April 2, test patterns began airing on April 7, and full commercial programming launched on May 5.

Before going on air, Gore Publishing sold a controlling interest to Noran E. Kersta—formerly with NBC and WFTL-TV’s inaugural general manager—operating under Tri-County Broadcasting Company. As Florida’s first UHF television station and third overall following WTVJ (channel 4) in Miami and WMBR-TV in Jacksonville, WFTL-TV brought NBC programming competition previously exclusive to WTVJ. Despite this affiliation shift, some NBC shows continued airing on channel 4. Another local UHF station, Gerico’s WITV (channel 17), began transmissions on December 1, 1953.

In August 1954, discussions commenced between WITV and WFTL-TV about merging operations to avoid competing UHF stations amid networks’ preference for VHF channels. Early reports indicated WITV would acquire WFTL-TV with channel 17 prevailing; however, after three months no deal materialized. Tri-County chose to invest further rather than sell.

By late September, Tri-County announced a $500,000 capital investment that included constructing a new 1,000-foot tower and upgrading equipment with the goal of making channel 23 the most powerful UHF station nationwide while maintaining full NBC affiliation. The station also planned to serve as a production center for kinescope recordings of major sporting events such as the World Series for distribution across Latin America. Despite challenges facing UHF broadcasters, R. G. Gore expressed optimism about the station’s future.

Relocation to Miami

In 1952, Miami was allocated UHF channels 27 and 33. Two applicants sought channel 27: Robert Rounsaville, owner of radio station WMBM (790 AM), and Sun Coast Broadcasting Corporation—partially owned by Miami radio station WMIE, a business venture linked to former Georgia governor E. D. Rivers. Rounsaville withdrew his application in December, leading the FCC to grant a construction permit to WMIE. The new station adopted the call sign WMIE-TV and aimed to begin broadcasting within four to six months.

However, interference concerns arose due to FCC allocations assigning channels 17 and 23 to Fort Lauderdale alongside Miami’s channels 27 and 33. WFTL-TV sought an upgrade but risked frequency conflicts if relocating closer to Miami. In October 1954, WFTL-TV petitioned the FCC to shift Miami’s channels from 27 and 33 to channels 29 and 35; the FCC proposed retaining channel 33 while changing channel 27 to channel 39.

In November, Storer Broadcasting purchased WFTL-TV’s assets along with the unbuilt WMIE-TV permit, merging them into its seventh television station and second UHF operation. Storer—a significant South Florida broadcaster owning WGBS (710 AM) and WGBS-FM (96.3)—had recently expanded into new corporate offices in Miami Beach but was denied a VHF license due to ownership restrictions. Storer paid $300,000 for WFTL-TV plus $35,410 covering Rivers’s expenses related to the permit and committed to continuing expansion plans.

The FCC approved this acquisition in December. On December 24, WFTL-TV officially became Miami-licensed WGBS-TV under the former WMIE-TV permit. Technical enhancements raised effective radiated power from 23,000 watts to 185,000 watts by January 1955. Radio station WINZ and WMFL—the permit holder for channel 33—filed requests for rehearing regarding Storer’s acquisitions, but these were ultimately denied.

Demise

George B. Storer, the original founder of the WGBS stations, renewed his pursuit of VHF channel 10 following a favorable decision by an appeals court that temporarily overturned FCC ownership restrictions (a ruling later reversed by the Supreme Court). In April 1955, he cautioned that awarding channel 10 to another party would render UHF broadcasting in Miami unsustainable, potentially forcing a shutdown of television operations there. Mitchell Wolfson, the developer behind WTVJ, viewed Storer's actions as bold. Despite Storer’s efforts, Biscayne Television Corporation secured authorization in March 1956 to establish WCKT (channel 7). WCKT debuted as the NBC affiliate on July 29, 1956, acquiring significant programming previously aired on channel 23. Subsequently, Storer transferred channel 23’s studios from Fort Lauderdale to his own property located at NE 21st Street and Biscayne Boulevard.

By March 1957, WGBS-TV was functioning independently when Public Service Television—a subsidiary of Miami-based National Airlines holding the construction permit for WPST-TV on VHF channel 10—approached for a purchase of WGBS’s equipment. On April 5, Storer consented to sell the land, tower, and studio facilities to Public Service Television for an undisclosed price reported to exceed $500,000. WGBS-TV discontinued broadcasts on April 13, with commitments that its personnel would be absorbed by Public Service Television; this transaction accelerated the launch of channel 10. Storer admitted that since acquiring it, the UHF station had not been financially viable. WPST-TV commenced broadcasting on August 2, 1957, inaugurating new studios at the Biscayne Boulevard location acquired from Storer the previous year.

Channel 23 after WGBS-TV

The transfer of WGBS-TV’s assets to the new channel 10 did not include the license to operate channel 23, which remained under Storer’s control for an additional ten years. In 1966, he announced intentions to revive the station, referencing the All-Channel Receiver Act, which required new television sets to include UHF tuning capabilities. Additionally, Storer reacquired the tower site formerly used by WGBS-TV after Public Service Television lost channel 10’s license to L. B. Wilson, who repurposed it for FM facility upgrades. However, by March 1967, Storer revealed no immediate plans to reactivate channel 23.

In May 1967, Storer agreed to transfer the construction permit and lease both the tower site and building to Coastal Broadcasting System, Inc., owned by Al Lapin, founder of IHOP. Coastal Broadcasting resumed operations on channel 23 as WAJA-TV on November 14, 1967.