WFFF-TV - History

History

WFFF-TV signed on August 31, 1997. Prior to the station's launch, the Champlain Valley was the last top-100 television market without a primary Fox affiliate; CBS affiliate WCAX-TV aired Fox Sports and Fox Kids programming, while the network's full schedule was available on most Vermont cable systems through Foxnet. New York State cable systems had imported WNYW from New York City, while Canadian cable systems carried WUTV from Buffalo, New York or WUHF from Rochester, New York. WFFF was originally owned by Champlain Valley Telecasting, but was operated by Heritage Media, owner of NBC affiliate WPTZ, through an LMA.

WFFF originally planned to broadcast its analog channel 44 signal from Mount Mansfield; however, while the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted a construction permit, the station was unable to secure approval from the Mount Mansfield Collocation Association. As a result, after three years of attempts, it was forced to transmit from WPTZ's tower on Terry Mountain in Peru, New York under special temporary authority, resulting in less over-the-air coverage of the eastern portion of the market than anticipated. WFFF, along with the other Burlington/Plattsburgh stations, were able to sign their digital signals on the air from Mount Mansfield in 2006, but its analog signal remained on Terry Mountain until 2009.

Shortly before WFFF began broadcasting, Heritage Media announced the sale of its broadcasting properties, including WPTZ and the LMA with WFFF, to Sinclair Broadcast Group; soon after taking over in early 1998, Sinclair sold WPTZ and the WFFF LMA to Sunrise Television. Sunrise promptly swapped WPTZ to Hearst-Argyle Television, but transferred WFFF's non-license assets to Smith Broadcasting (which, like Sunrise, was controlled by Robert Smith); soon afterward, the station began to operate independently of WPTZ. Smith bought WFFF outright a year later.

In February 1999, WFFF began airing thirty second daily vignettes called Vermont's Most Wanted along with sister program Citizen's Patrol. The efforts were produced in cooperation with local law enforcement and the Champlain Valley branch of the national Crimestoppers non-profit organization.

The station added a secondary affiliation with The WB in 1999, after WBVT-LP (now WGMU-CA) dropped that network in favor of UPN. For a time, the two hours of prime time programming from The WB aired in separate two hour-long blocks weeknights at 5 and 10. WFFF eventually moved the entire two hours of programming to a delayed basis at 10 p.m. after Fox prime time in continuous block named "The WB Time". WFFF also cleared the Kids' WB blocks (as well as the Daytime WB block that replaced the weekday block in early 2006), in addition to Fox's own children's programming. Despite the secondary affiliation, area cable systems continued to carry WPIX, New York City's WB affiliate.

The death of Bob Smith (head of family-owned Smith Broadcasting) in 2003 led to the family's decision in 2004 to sell its group of stations to an investment group called Smith Media, LLC. After researching markets where the company now had ownership in, it was discovered WVNY was up for sale. Finding a way to satisfy FCC ownership rules, Smith Media partnered with Lambert Broadcasting and became the senior partner in a local marketing agreement with WVNY. Smith Media shut down that station's longtime facilities in South Burlington, reduced redundant staff, and relocated its operations into WFFF's Colchester facilities. This arrangement placed WFFF in the unusual position of being the senior partner as a Fox-affiliated station in a virtual duopoly with an ABC affiliate (most virtual or legal duopolies involving a Fox affiliate and a Big Three-affiliated station result in the Fox affiliate serving as the junior partner).

When The WB and UPN were shut down to create The CW in September 2006, WFFF became a secondary affiliate of the new network, airing its primetime programming in the same block that formerly housed WB programming. CW programming moved to a new subchannel of WFFF on September 27, 2007; the subchannel immediately replaced WPIX on Comcast's Vermont systems, with Charter Communications in New York State following suit on December 31.

The station became digital-only effective February 17, 2009. As a result, some parts of the viewing area were left without a full-powered Fox affiliate including Enosburg in Franklin County, Vermont as well as parts of Franklin and Essex Counties in New York State.

Due to an ongoing retransmission dispute, Time Warner Cable replaced WFFF with WNYF-CD from Watertown/Massena, New York on December 16, 2010. Its CW subchannel was also dropped, though the network remained available through WPIX. Sister station WVNY was simultaneously replaced with WUTR from Utica, New York. WFFF was restored on January 8, 2011 after a new deal was reached with Time Warner.

Smith Media agreed to sell WFFF to Nexstar Broadcasting Group on November 5, 2012. Concurrently, Lambert Broadcasting will sell WVNY to Mission Broadcasting, whose stations are all operated by Nexstar through shared services agreements. Upon the sale's closure, Utica NBC affiliate WKTV will be left as Smith Media's only remaining television station property.