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WFTX-TV

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WFTX-TV
CityCape Coral, Florida
Channels
BrandingFox 4 (cable channel)
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
October 14, 1985
(38 years ago)(1985-10-14)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog:36 (UHF, 1985–2009)
  • Digital:35 (UHF, until 2020)
Independent(1985–1986)
Call signmeaning
"Family Television X"; a variation on co-ownedWFTS-TVin Tampa[1]
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID70649
ERP1,000 kW
HAAT391 m (1,283 ft)
Transmitter coordinates26°47′39.7″N81°48′4″W/ 26.794361°N 81.80111°W/26.794361; -81.80111
Links
Public license information
Websitewww.fox4now.com

WFTX-TV(channel 36) is atelevision stationlicensed toCape Coral, Florida,United States, serving as theFoxaffiliate forSouthwest Florida.Owned by theE.W. Scripps Company,the station has studios on Southwest Pine Island Road (SR 78) in Cape Coral, and its transmitter is located nearPunta Gorda(east ofI-75/SR 93) near theCharlotteandLeecounty line.

WFTX-TV is branded asFox 4,in reference to its channel location on mostcablesystems in themarket,which it has enjoyed since its sign on in 1985.

History[edit]

In 1982, interest began in the channel 36 allocation to Cape Coral. In 1984, out of four applications, aFederal Communications Commission(FCC) administrative law judge gave the nod to Florida Family Broadcasting Limited, which included one Native American and one Asian investor, over three other groups seeking the construction permit.[3]Florida Family—a company associated withFamily Group Broadcasting,which two years prior had signed onWFTS-TVinTampa—had to settle with the other applicants, a process that look longer than expected.[4]

Construction work began in April,[5]and after a prolonged construction marked by delays due to high winds, WFTX-TV started broadcasting on October 14, 1985.[6]It was the firstindependent stationin Southwest Florida, and from the start, it aired on channel 4 on most systems.[6]Within a year of building WFTX-TV, Family Group sold it for $17 million toTerre Haute, Indiana–basedWabash ValleyBroadcasting, controlled by the family ofTony Hulman;Wabash Valley, which ownedWTHI-TVin its home town of Terre Haute, had also agreed to purchaseWBSP-TVinOcalaearlier that year.[7][8]

Even though it was on the air in 1985, a full studio facility was not completed until 1987; that same year, the station affiliated with Fox (partly to prevent new independentWNPL-TVchannel 46 from doing so) and extended its coverage north with an increase in tower height.[9]WFTX even pitched ABC on defecting from its affiliate, perennial third-place stationWEVU-TV,in 1988.[10]With Fox, channel 36's programming rapidly grew in ratings. Its first major local program, the consumer seriesTroubleshooter,was outdrawing national and local newscasts by 1991.[11]

The station changed hands again in 1998, whenEmmis Communicationspurchased the assets of Wabash Valley Broadcasting, giving Emmis its first television stations.[12]From 2002 to 2005, WFTX'smaster controland other internal operations were controlled from a regional hub located at the company'sWKCFinLake Mary,nearOrlando.[13]Emmis exited the television business in 2005, withJournal Broadcast Groupacquiring WFTX and two other stations.[14]

On July 30, 2014, it was announced that the E. W. Scripps Company would acquire Journal Communications in an all-stock transaction and spin off the combined company's print assets. The deal made WFTX a sister station once again to WFTS and alsoNBCaffiliateWPTV-TVinWest Palm Beach.[15]The FCC approved the deal on December 12, 2014. It was approved by shareholders on March 11, 2015, closing on April 1.

In the fall of 2021, WFTX addedIon Televisionas a subchannel after Scripps' acquisition ofIon Media,bringing the network over-the-air to Southwest Florida for the first time since its 1998 launch. TheFort Myers–Naplesmarket was the only market in the state outside Tallahassee which never had a station owned by Ion Media or its forerunner companies.

News operation[edit]

In 1992, WFTX announced it would start a local news service in 1993.[16]The first 10 p.m. newscast aired on October 10, 1993,[17]In its first year, theAssociated Pressselected WFTX as having the best medium-market newscast in the state of Florida.[18]A 6 p.m. program was added in 1995, incorporating the previously separateTroubleshootershow;[19]low ratings prompted its cancellation in 2000.[20]

After the sale to Journal, WFTX expanded its news department with a focus on consumer advocacy and investigative reporting. A weekday morning newscast titledFox 4 News Risingsubsequently debuted in the fall of 2006; the station launched an 11 p.m. newscast in 2007 and a 6 p.m. show in 2010.[21]A 5 p.m. hour has since been added.

Due to the highly competitive nature of the Fort Myers–Naples market, WFTX's flagship 10 p.m. newscast has attracted competition over the years. In August 2006 whenABCaffiliate WZVN-TV (channel 26) announced that it would launch a nightly prime time newscast on cable-onlyMyNetworkTVaffiliate "WNFM".On March 26, 2007,CBSaffiliateWINK-TV(channel 11) entering into the 10 p.m. race with its own broadcast onCWaffiliate WXCW. Right from the start, this emerged as a strong second-place finisher to WFTX's longer-established newscast, building on WINK-TV's longtime status as the most watched station in the market. On May 25 after only eight months on-the-air, the nightly WZVN-produced newscasts on WNFM were dropped, due to Comcast's frequent technical difficulties (the cable provider operates the MyNetworkTV affiliate) which hindered in the program's ratings, as well as the success of the WXCW production. To take on thebig three stations,WFTX began airing an hour-long weeknight 6 p.m. newscast on August 2, 2010, with the second half competing against the national evening news programs on WZVN,WBBHand WINK.

Notable former on-air staff[edit]

Technical information[edit]

Subchannels[edit]

The station's signal ismultiplexed:

Subchannels of WFTX-TV[22]
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
36.1 720p 16:9 WFTX-DT Main WFTX-TV programming /Fox
36.2 480i BOUNCE Bounce TV
36.3 GRIT Grit
36.4 COURT Court TV
36.5 ION Ion Television
36.6 MYSTERY Ion Mystery
36.7 QVC QVC

Analog-to-digital conversion[edit]

WFTX-TV discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, overUHFchannel 36, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United Statestransitioned from analog to digital broadcastsunder federal mandate.[23]The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transitionUHFchannel 35.[24][25]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Erickson, Michael (February 21, 1986)."Looking between the letters".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1D,6D.Archivedfrom the original on December 5, 2021.RetrievedDecember 5,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^"Facility Technical Data for WFTX-TV".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ^"Charlotte County investors win license for Cape Coral TV station".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. September 13, 1984. p. 1B.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^Leighton, Brian (October 13, 1984)."Group seeking Cape TV license given more time for settlement".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1B,3B.Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^Sabo, William (April 2, 1985)."Council approves Cape TV station".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1B.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^abRinella, Frank (October 15, 1985)."TV station finally gets signal across".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1B.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^"TV station in Cape purchased".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. July 12, 1986. p. 5B.Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^"TV station sold".The Miami Herald.Miami, Florida. September 12, 1986. p. 1C.Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^Zoldan, Sheldon (March 9, 1987)."WFTX-TV commits $1 million for tower, studio improvements".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. Business 8.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^Zoldan, Sheldon (June 30, 1988)."TV-36 wants ABC to switch channel".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1A,8A.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^Berg McClure, Christy (May 12, 1991)."Sly like a fox: Some innovative TV programming moves WFTX up".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1E, [v 2E].Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^Jerse, Dorothy (April 5, 2008)."LOOKING BACK: 1983-Terre Haute receives 13 mentions in new state promotional booklet".Tribune-Star.Archivedfrom the original on April 1, 2012.RetrievedMarch 21,2011.
  13. ^Kerschbaumer, Ken (April 1, 2002)."Emmis shares hub".Broadcasting & Cable.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021.
  14. ^Romano, Allison (December 1, 2005)."Emmis Completes Deal for Six TVs".Broadcasting & Cable.Archivedfrom the original on January 18, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021.
  15. ^Glauber, Bill (July 30, 2014)."Journal, Scripps deal announced".Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.Archivedfrom the original on July 31, 2014.RetrievedJuly 30,2014.
  16. ^"Fine Tuning: WFTX, FOX trot to TV success".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. September 4, 1992. pp. Sun-Press 1,2.Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^abStrauss, Larry A. (October 10, 1993)."News faces: WFTX-TV joins local broadcast battle".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1F,4F.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^Strauss, Larry A. (April 22, 1994)."Classy jazz, piano shows light up Phil".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. Gulf Coasting 2.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^Strauss, Larry A. (August 1, 1995)."Time for change in news shows at WFTX, WBBH".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1D.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^Scott, Denise L. (June 6, 2000)."WFTX drops 6 p.m. newscast".News-Press.Fort Myers, Florida. p. 1B.Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021– via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^Gauthier, Andrew (May 10, 2010)."In Fort Meyers, WFTX Enters 6pm News Competition".TVSpy.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021.
  22. ^"RabbitEars query for WFTX".rabbitears.info.Archivedfrom the original on December 7, 2021.RetrievedDecember 7,2021.
  23. ^Archived atGhostarchiveand theWayback Machine:"Fort Myers TV Stations Switch Off Analog (2009)".YouTube.
  24. ^"Attachment I: DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds"(PDF).Archived(PDF)from the original on August 29, 2013.RetrievedJanuary 18,2014.
  25. ^"CDBS Print".Archivedfrom the original on December 8, 2021.RetrievedOctober 30,2018.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=WFTX-TV&oldid=1226026069"