WIFL

WIFL is a television station serving the Miami/Fort Lauderdale, FL market as an affiliate of Horizon. The station is owned and operated by Palm, Inc. alongside sister independent station WALI. 
==Station History==
=== As CBS Affiliate WSF-TV ===
The station first signed on the air on July 29, 1954 as WSF-TV. It was one of the first television stations to launch in South Florida. Founded by the Biscayne Corporation, it was owned by a group of local business owners whom also owned WSF-AM-FM radio, then CBS affiliates. By default, the station joined the CBS television network.
In addition to carrying CBS network programs, the station launched local programming including Happy Homemaker, Bowling for Dollars, Petey the Pirate's Playhouse, Now We're Cooking, Amateur Wrestling, Bop 'Til You Drop, and Shock Theatre. The station also launched the first one-hour local talk show, The Morning Show, with a live studio audience, a novelty for the late 1950s but would be later popularized on network television and in syndication. By 1962, the station was producing weeknight newscasts under the sponsored name The Shell Oil Report, which later became Today's News Tonight following the end of the Shell sponsorship in 1966.
By the late 1960s, WSF-TV was airing programming from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week and was one of the most successful television stations in the country. The station's success was attributed to Biscayne's influx of money to provide the station with the best equipment and programming inventory. The station began the process of converting to color broadcasting by 1965 and completed the transition by 1967 when the final local program, Shock Theatre, finally debuted in color.
===As WSFT===
In 1970, Biscayne Corporation sold the station to King Television, then the broadcasting division of print syndication company King Features Syndicate. This separated the station from its radio sisters who were sold to Radiocasters, Inc. Because of this separation, the station's call sign was changed to WSFT. The deal was made in an unsuccessful effort by King to have leverage in purchasing The Miami Herald from its owners Knight-Ridder.
In a twist of irony from the failed King deal, the station formed an early partnership with The Miami Herald to pool resources for news coverage.
By 1978, most of the station's local programming had been canceled aside from three 30-minute newscasts at 12pm, 6pm, and 11pm.
In 1980, the station was sold to Pegasus Broadcasting. In 1981, the station relocated to new state-of-the-art television studios in downtown Miami and returned some local programming to the station.
The station was sold to Raymar Broadcasting in 1987.
=== Loss of CBS affiliation ===
By 1994, CBS had grown tired of WSFT's frequent preemptions for local programming. CBS had approached Raymar with various offers to purchase the station, with Raymar refusing each time. Raymar also refused CBS' demands to carry the network without preemptions except for breaking news, and was unwilling to renegotiate their contract with the network to go to a reverse compensation model, where the station would pay CBS for the rights to carry the network's programming.
In 1995, CBS Broadcasting, Inc. set out to purchase WYAM, then one of two FOX affiliates covering South Florida along with network-owned WJBV, with the intent of switching the station to CBS. Raymar fought to block the sale in court, contesting that CBS was unfairly pressuring the station in order to strongarm a sale to the network. Raymar also countersued the network for loss of advertising revenue on the station due to the network's lackluster ratings and loss of the NFL rights to FOX. Ultimately, the court sided with CBS and the sale of WYAM to CBS Broadcasting, Inc. was allowed to go forward.
Raymar filed an injunction to keep the CBS affiliation through the end of their contract with the network, which was set to expire in September 1996, but soon after settled out of court with CBS and ended their affiliation with the network on August 11, 1995. The last CBS program to air on the station was The Late Show with David Letterman. After the show ended, WSFT became an independent station and ended their 41-year relationship with CBS.
===As Independent station WIFL ===
Almost immediately after losing CBS, the station changed its callsign to WIFL which stood for Independent FLorida. The station replaced timeslots formerly occupied by CBS This Morning and CBS Evening News with expanded newscasts. The station moved its 11pm newscast to 10pm and expanded it to one hour, as well as debuted an hour-long 8pm newscast. The station filled remaining timeslots formerly occupied by network programming with off-network sitcoms and dramas, first-run talk shows and game shows.
The station was sold again to Unity Communications in 2000.
===As MyNetworkTV affiliate===
Fox announced the launch of MyNetworkTV on February 22, 2006, less than a month after CBS and Time Warner announced the formation of The CW on January 24. Within hours of the announcement, WIFL announced that they had reached an agreement with Fox to affiliate with MyNetworkTV upon the network's launch in September 2006. It was one of few stations that was neither an affiliate of UPN or The WB to announce an affiliation deal with one of the new networks.
By Summer 2006, for the first time in 50 years, WIFL started branding outside of it's longtime branding of "Channel 7" in favor of "MyTV 7" in promos. However, the station did not adopt the network-standard MyNetworkTV logo like most stations, choosing to tack the "my" wordmark next to the existing Circle 7 logo.
Despite dismal ratings of MyNetworkTV, WIFL continued to enjoy success though not as much as it had previously as an independent station. Unity Communications would put the station up for sale in 2008, but struggled to find a buyer in the economic recession. The station was finally sold in 2009 to local magazine publisher Palm, Inc., who owns the station to this day.
===Return to independence===
In 2008, WIFL chose not to renew its affiliation with the network, instead opting to revert back to an independent station. The move proved to be a good one, as MyNetworkTV transitioned from being a first-run broadcast network to a programming service the very next year.
In place of MyNetworkTV programming, WIFL launched a new 8-10pm newscast called Action News Primetime which would lead into the station's newly-renamed 10pm newscast Action News Tonight.
The primetime newscast was later canceled and replaced with syndicated off-network sitcoms until 2020, when it returned in a one-hour format from 7-8pm to provide extended coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Around the same time, the 9am hour of Action News This Morning was rechristened Action News at 9am with a separate anchor team.
In 2021, the station canceled the 4am hour of Action News This Morning citing low viewership. At the same time, the station launched new newscasts weekdays at 4pm and weeknights at 11pm. In 2022, the 11pm newscast was expanded to six-nights a week with the addition of a Saturday 11pm newscast. A weeknight 30-minute sports show Action Sports Extra debuted at 11:30pm in 2023 replacing TMZ.
In 2023, the station returned to using the legacy WSF callsign for the first time since 1970 coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Action News.
===Becoming a CW affiliate===
In mid-2023, longtime CW affiliate WCSF discontinued their affiliation with the network. For several months afterward, the area did not have a CW affiliate, with local cable and satellite providers piping in CW programming from WCWO in Orlando. The network approached several area stations looking for a new affiliate before signing an agreement with Palm, Inc. in December 2023 for WSF to become the area's new CW affiliate effective January 1, 2024.
===End of CW affiliation, joining Horizon===
On April 25, 2024, Palm, Inc. announced that the affiliation agreement with The CW would not be renewed and the station would revert back to being an independent on May 1. The company stated that the agreement had been month-to-month and the station exercised its option not to renew. On the same day, the station reverted back to the longtime WIFL callsign. The CW network programming would move to WMVJ.
On April 28, Palm, Inc. signed an agreement with Horizon, Inc. to become the Miami affiliate of Horizon Television beginning May 1. Previously, Horizon was only available via streaming in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale market. Additional local news and syndicated programming that no longer had room on the station was subsequently moved to sister station WALI.
On June 1, 2024, WALI was rebranded as Horizon 7 Plus, and Horizon afternoon network programming was moved from WIFL to WALI so that WIFL could carry additional newscasts.
==Programming Schedule==
 	SUN 	MON 	TUE 	WED 	THU 	FRI 	SAT
6:00AM 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News
6:30AM 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News
7:00AM 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings
7:30AM 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings
8:00AM 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings
8:30AM 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings 	Horizon Mornings
9:00AM 	Political Perspectives 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	E/I Programming
9:30AM 	Political Perspectives 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	Horizon Live 	E/I Programming
10:00AM	South Florida Focus with Antonio Mora	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	E/I Programming
10:30AM	South Florida Focus with Antonio Mora	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	E/I Programming
11:00AM	People Puzzler 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	E/I Programming
11:30AM	Pictionary 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	Sherri 	E/I Programming
12:00PM	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon
12:30PM	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon 	Horizon 7 News at Noon
1:00PM 	Dateline 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Dateline
1:30PM 	Dateline 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Horizon 7 News at 1pm 	Dateline
2:00PM 	Dateline 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Dateline
2:30PM 	Dateline 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Karamo 	Dateline
3:00PM 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Sherri
3:30PM 	The Drew Barrymore Show 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Horizon 7 News at 3pm 	Sherri
4:00PM 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm
4:30PM 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm 	Horizon 7 News at 4pm
5:00PM 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm
5:30PM 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm 	Horizon 7 News at 5pm
6:00PM 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm 	Horizon 7 News at 6pm
6:30PM 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight
7:00PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight 	Horizon News Tonight
7:30PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	The SoFlo Show 	The SoFlo Show 	The SoFlo Show 	The SoFlo Show 	The SoFlo Show 	In Depth with Graham Bensinger
8:00PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
8:30PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
9:00PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
9:30PM 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
10:00PM	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
10:30PM	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming 	Horizon Primetime Programming
11:00PM	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm 	Horizon 7 News at 11pm
11:30PM	Chicago Med 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	Chicago Med
12:00AM	Chicago Med 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(11:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	Chicago Med
12:30AM	Chicago Fire 	Chicago Fire 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming
1:00AM 	Chicago Fire 	Chicago Fire 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming 	(12:35) Horizon Late Night Programming
1:30AM 	Law & Order: SVU 	Paid Programming 	Paid Programming 	Paid Programming 	Paid Programming 	Paid Programming 	Paid Programming
2:00AM 	Law & Order: SVU 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Law & Order: SVU
2:30AM 	Law & Order: SVU 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Law & Order: SVU
3:00AM 	Law & Order: SVU 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Law & Order: SVU
3:30AM 	Paid Programming 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Horizon News Overnight 	Law & Order: SVU
4:00AM 	Paid Programming 	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Paid Programming
4:30AM 	Paid Programming 	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Horizon News Overnight (repeat first hour)	Paid Programming
5:00AM 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News
5:30AM 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News 	Horizon 7 Morning News
==Newscast History==
Between WIFL and sister station WALI, WIFL runs more than 12 ½ hours of local news per weekday, the largest output of news from any station in South Florida. The station also has the largest news team in South Florida to help cover all of its output. The station also has talent longevity, with many anchors and reporters having worked at the station for 10 years or more.
The station pioneered the Action News name and format and has one of the longest track records of using the brand in the country. The station first used it from 1973 to 1987 and again from 1994 until 2024.
===News Branding History===
*Shell Oil Report (1956-1960)
*The News Tonight (1960-1966)
*Today's News Tonight (1966-1970)
*NewsScene 7 (1970-1973)
*Action News (1973-1987)
*Channel 7 News (1987-1992)
*News 7 (1992-1994)
*(Channel 7) Action News (1994-2024)
*Horizon 7 News (2024-Present)
===News Slogan History===
*No Slogan (1956-1970)
*First On The Scene (1970-1977)
*The News People (1977-1982)
*So Good to Turn To (1982-1984)
*South Florida's News Specialists (1982-1987)
*South Florida's #1 Team for News (1987-1992)
*South Florida's 24 Hour News (1992-1994)
*Taking Action for You (1994-2020)
*Committed To You (2020-2024)
*On Your Side (2024)
*News You Count On (2024-Present)
===News Music History===
*No Music (1956-1960)
*Ticker Sounds (1960-1970)
*The Action News Theme by Tom Sellers (1970-1973)
*Move Closer to Your World by Al Ham (1973-1978)
*TuesdayC by Tuesday Productions (1978-1982)*
*So Good to Turn To by Gari Media Group (1982-1987)*
*News Series 2001 by Gari Media Group (1987-1992)*
*Newswire by 615 Music (1992-1994)
*Global Village by Stephen Arnold Music (1994-1998)*
*One World by Stephen Arnold Music (1998-2001)*
*News Matrix by Stephen Arnold Music (2001-2006)
*In-Sink by 615 Music (2006-2024)*
*True News by 11/One Music (2024-Present)
*Production Music: You Light Up My Life (Instrumental) by Galerie (2024-Present, for The SoFlo Show)
*denotes that WIFL was an original client for the package, or commissioned new themes.
===Voiceover Artists===
*Staff Announcers/Various (1956-1982)
*Charlie Van Dyke (1982-1987)
*Beau Weaver (1987-1994, 2024-Present)
*Eric Gordon (1994-1998)
*David Kaye (1998-2001)
*Jim Cutler (2001-2020)
*Steve Stone (2020-2024)
===Current On-Air Staff===
==== Anchors ====
* Roy de Jesus - weekdays 5-7 a.m., Alert Desk Anchor 7-9 a.m.
* Erin Guy - weekdays 5-7 a.m. and 9 a.m.
* Nathalie Pozo - weekdays 7-9 a.m., Alert Desk Anchor 5-7 a.m., 9 a.m.
* Steven Graves - weekdays 7-10 a.m.
* Tiffany Kenney - weekdays at noon, 1 p.m., and 3 p.m.
* Jeff Butera - weekdays at noon, 1 p.m., and 3 p.m.
* Antonio Mora - weekdays at 5, 6, and 9 p.m.; also host South Florida Focus
* Todd McDermott - weekdays at 4, 6:30, 10 p.m., and 11 p.m.
* Felicia Rodriguez - weekdays at 4, 6:30 and 9 p.m.
* Holly Gregory - weekdays at 5, 6, 10 p.m., and 11 p.m.
* Erin Murray - weekend mornings and noon
* Taylor Hernandez - weekend mornings and noon
* Robert Guaderrama - weekend evenings
* Jade Jarvis - weekend evenings
==== The SoFlo Show ====
* Virginia Johnson - anchor/reporter
* Alison Walker - anchor/reporter
* Roy de Jesus - Contributor/Now We're Cooking
==== Storm Team 7 Weather ====
* Sandra Shaw - Meteorologist; weekday mornings 5-7 a.m., 7-9 a.m.
* Glenn Glazer - Meteorologist; weekdays at 9 a.m., noon, and 1 p.m.
* Jorge Torres - Meteorologist; weekdays at 3 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m., and 6 p.m.
* Cris Martinez - Chief Meteorologist; weekdays at 6:30 p.m., 9 p.m., 10 p.m., and 11 p.m.
* Vanessa Vinent - Meteorologist; weekend mornings and noon
* Brooke Silverang - Meteorologist; weekend evenings
==== Team 7 Traffic ====
* Jerry Hume - weekday mornings
* Tim Wronka - weekday afternoons
* Yasmine Julmisse - weekend mornings, weekday fill-in/reporter
* Julia Haley - weekend evenings, weekday fill-in/weather forecaster
==== Reporters ====
* Angie Angers
* Caleb Califano
* Corina Cappabianca - Washington D.C. Reporter
* Jossie Carbonare
* Dalia Dangerfield - Investigative Reporter
* Jason Delgado - Florida Capitol Reporter
* Melissa Eichman - Health Reporter
* Angi Gonzalez - Washington D.C. Reporter
* Ari Hait
* Julia Hazel
* Steve King
* Joseph Konig - Digital Journalist
* Evan Koslof - also fill-in anchor
* Jason Lanning - Investigative Reporter
* Cait McVey
* Sooji Nam
* Terri Parker - Investigative Reporter
* Fadia Patterson
* Gabriel Porras
* Jorja Roman
* Josh Rojas - Special Features
* Angela Rozier
* Fallon Silcox
* Brendan Tierney
* Saundra Weathers
==== Sports ====
* Shayne Wright - Sports Director, weekdays
* Yianni Kourakis - Sports Anchor/Reporter
* Danielle Stein - Sports Reporter/Fill-in Anchor
* Mike Cairns - Sports Reporter/Fill-in Anchor
* Olivia Stacey - Sports Reporter/Fill-in Anchor
== Gallery ==
File:WIFLID2024.png|Station ID (2024)
File:WIFLNewsAdvert.png|WIFL/Horizon News Poster Advertisement
File:WIFLNewsGraphics.png|Lower Third (Morning/Afternoon Variant)
File:WIFLBreaking.png|Lower Third (Breaking News Variant)
File:WIFLWeather.png|Weather Alert Coverage
File:WIFL70YearsID.png|Station ID (70 Years Variant)
File:WIFLMobile.png|Breaking News Graphic (vertical mode)
Category:Miami
Category:Florida
Category:Palm, Inc.
Category:Channel 7
Category:Horizon network affiliates
Category:1954
Category:Television channels and stations established in 1954