WMBB is an ABC-affiliated television station serving Panama City and the northwestern Florida Panhandle, with a CW Plus service on its second digital subchannel.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
WMBB is a full-power television station based in Panama City, Florida, serving viewers across the northwestern Florida Panhandle. The station broadcasts on virtual channel 13 and is affiliated with ABC. Its second digital subchannel carries The CW through the CW Plus program. WMBB is owned by Nexstar Media Group, one of the largest local television station operators in the United States, and operates under the News 13 identity in its local news programming. The station began broadcasting on October 4, 1973, as WDTB. It was established by the Panhandle Broadcasting Corporation, an organization led by attorney Denver T. Brannen and supported financially by local businessman and automobile dealer Tommy Thomas and attorneys Julian Bennett and Dick Arnold. The original call sign was derived from Brannen's initials. WDTB initially operated as an NBC affiliate, entering a market in which the VHF channel 13 allocation had remained unused until relatively late compared with many other American television markets. In 1977, Octagon Broadcasting acquired the station and changed its call letters to WMBB. The new calls were intended to evoke the region's tourism identity and stand for “The World's Most Beautiful Beaches,” a reference to the Gulf Coast beaches associated with the Panama City area. WMBB initially had aspirations of serving viewers in Tallahassee as well as the Florida Panhandle, although the Tallahassee market later gained its own NBC service and the station's practical focus remained centered on Panama City and surrounding communities. WMBB became an ABC affiliate on January 4, 1982, exchanging network affiliations with crosstown competitor WJHG. ABC has remained the station's primary network relationship. After Buford Television purchased WMBB in 1986, the company invested in facilities, equipment, and news personnel. During this period the station moved into a larger facility on Harrison Avenue, formerly occupied by a Buick dealership. The expanded building provided substantially more room for newsroom, production, and technical operations. A major interruption occurred in May 1989, when an Air Force F-15 struck a wire associated with WMBB's transmission installation at Frink, destroying the tower, antenna, and transmitter. The station was subsequently acquired by Spartan Communications, which completed the purchase in April 1990. Spartan constructed a replacement transmission system, and on August 6, 1990, WMBB began operating from a 1,500-foot tower near Youngstown. The improved facility expanded and strengthened coverage, particularly in the western part of the market and in the growing southern Walton County and Destin areas. The station has periodically been involved in broader debates about television programming and local editorial judgment. In 1993, WMBB declined to air the ABC police drama NYPD Blue because of concerns about its content, substituting syndicated programming. It eventually began carrying the series in early 1997, after the introduction of the TV Parental Guidelines system and the V-chip. WMBB changed ownership several times in the 2000s and 2010s. Media General acquired the station in 2000 as part of a group transaction. Media General's ownership of WMBB alongside the Jackson County Floridan newspaper prompted regulatory scrutiny because of television-newspaper cross-ownership rules, although the company later received a permanent waiver. Hoak Media purchased WMBB from Media General in 2008. Gray Television announced plans to acquire Hoak's stations in 2013, but because Gray already owned other Panama City stations, WMBB was designated for divestiture and was sold instead to Nexstar Broadcasting Group. Nexstar completed the acquisition on June 13, 2014. Nexstar's later purchase of Media General in 2017 reunited WMBB with many of its former sister stations within the Nexstar portfolio. Local news and severe-weather coverage are central to WMBB's identity. In 2005, during Hurricane Dennis, the…
History
WMBB signed on October 4, 1973, as WDTB, an NBC affiliate established by Panhandle Broadcasting Corporation. The organization was led by attorney Denver T. Brannen and financed with support from Panama City businessman and automobile dealer Tommy Thomas and attorneys Julian Bennett and Dick Arnold. The original call letters reflected Brannen's name. The station occupied the relatively unusual VHF channel 13 allocation, which had become scarce in many American markets by the time WMBB began operations. Octagon Broadcasting, an Atlanta-based company, acquired WDTB in 1977 and changed the call sign to WMBB. The letters were associated with the slogan “The World's Most Beautiful Beaches,” reflecting the tourism identity of the Panama City region. WMBB was initially intended to have a wider role in serving the Florida Panhandle and parts of the Tallahassee area. That ambition diminished after WTWC-TV began broadcasting in Tallahassee in 1983, while Albany, Georgia station WALB already provided a usable NBC signal to some capital-region viewers. On January 4, 1982, WMBB became an ABC affiliate in an affiliation exchange with WJHG. ABC has remained WMBB's principal network affiliation. Buford Television of Tyler, Texas, purchased the station in 1986 and invested in its technical facilities and news operation. During Buford's ownership, WMBB moved from its earlier downtown location to a larger Harrison Avenue facility that had previously housed a Buick dealership. The new building gave the station considerably more operational space and supported a stronger local-news presence. WMBB suffered a serious transmission accident on May 18, 1989. At approximately 2:03 p.m. Central Time, an Air Force F-15 clipped a wire connected to the station's Frink tower. The impact destroyed the tower, antenna, and transmitter. Around the same period, ownership changed again: Spartan Communications acquired WMBB, completing the purchase on April 12, 1990. Spartan built a new transmission installation, and WMBB began broadcasting from a 1,500-foot tower in Youngstown on August 6, 1990. The new site improved reception in the western portion of the market, including southern Walton County and Destin. The station made a notable programming decision in 1993 by refusing to air ABC's NYPD Blue because management considered the drama's content unsuitable. WMBB replaced the program with syndicated sitcoms and did not add the series until early 1997, when the television industry had adopted the TV Parental Guidelines and the V-chip. This made WMBB one of the final ABC affiliates to begin carrying the program. Media General acquired WMBB in 2000 as part of a 13-station package valued at $605 million. Media General also purchased the Jackson County Floridan newspaper later that year. WMBB developed a Jackson County bureau using the newspaper's resources, creating a television-newspaper ownership combination that drew attention from the Federal Communications Commission. The issue became less significant after WMBB was sold, and Media General ultimately received a permanent waiver to continue operating both properties. Media General later sold most of its newspapers in 2012, apart from the Tampa Tribune, to World Media Holdings. In 2008, Hoak Media acquired WMBB from Media General. Hoak later announced the sale of most of its television holdings to Gray Television in 2013. Gray already owned WJHG-TV and WECP-LD in the Panama City area, however, so WMBB was placed among the overlap properties that had to be divested to comply with ownership rules. Nexstar Broadcasting Group agreed to purchase WMBB, along with KREX-TV, for $37.5 million, and completed the acquisition on June 13, 2014. Nexstar's acquisition of Media General in 2017 subsequently brought WMBB back into the same larger corporate family as many of its former Media General sister stations. WMBB's local-news identity has been strongly tied to weather and emergency reporting. During Hurricane Dennis in July 2005, the station became the first Panama City broadcaster to offer live storm coverage over the internet. It was also among the early television users of Weather Services International's Titan forecasting system, a three-dimensional tool used to visualize storm structure and forecast development. In 2011, the station announced News 13 Midday, a weekday 11 a.m. to noon newscast that restored a midday news format previously discontinued in the late 1990s. Tom Lewis, who had been a WMBB anchor in earlier decades and later worked for rival WJHG, returned as WMBB news director in 2016. The station ended analog broadcasting on June 12, 2009, under the federally mandated American digital television transition. Its digital signal moved from pre-transition UHF channel 19 to VHF channel 13. WMBB also operates a second digital subchannel, which has carried The CW through the CW Plus service; earlier digital programming included weather radar and This TV. On October 10, 2018, Hurricane Michael knocked WMBB off the air during one of the most severe storms to affect the Florida Panhandle. In 2020, WMBB expanded its production role by creating a weeknight 9 p.m. newscast for Fox affiliate WPGX. That arrangement ended on June 1, 2025. WMBB continues as an active Nexstar-owned ABC station with studios on Harrison Avenue and a transmitter near Youngstown.
- 2025
WPGX newscast production ends
[1]The WMBB-produced WPGX weeknight newscast ends on June 1.
- 2020
WPGX newscast production begins
[1]WMBB starts producing a weeknight 9 p.m. newscast for Fox affiliate WPGX.
- 2018
Hurricane Michael interruption
[1]Hurricane Michael knocks the station off the air on October 10.
- 2017
Nexstar completes Media General purchase
[1]The transaction reunites WMBB with many former Media General sister stations under Nexstar.
- 2014
Nexstar acquisition closes
[1]Nexstar Broadcasting Group completes its acquisition of WMBB after the station is divested from Gray's proposed Hoak transaction.
- 2011
News 13 Midday launches
[1]WMBB restores a weekday midday newscast from 11 a.m. to noon.
- 2009
Analog broadcasting ends
[1]WMBB completes the federally mandated transition to digital television.
- 2008
Hoak Media acquisition
[1]Hoak Media completes its purchase of WMBB from Media General.
- 2005
Online hurricane coverage expands
[1]The station streams live coverage of Hurricane Dennis and adopts advanced storm-forecasting visualization.
- 2000
Media General ownership begins
[1]WMBB joins Media General as part of a multi-station acquisition.
Products and positioning
A locally focused network television station positioned around Panama City and Florida Panhandle news, weather, emergency information, and community coverage, supported by ABC programming and a secondary CW service.
Local television news
News 13 local newscasts
WMBB's principal local-news offering covers Panama City and surrounding Florida Panhandle communities. Its programming includes regularly scheduled news, weather, traffic, public-interest reporting, and breaking-news updates. Local news is distributed through broadcast television and the station's digital channels and website.
Network television programming · 1982
ABC network service
WMBB carries programming from ABC as its primary network affiliation. The service complements locally produced news and weather with national entertainment, news, sports, and special-event programming supplied by the network.
Digital multicast television
CW Plus digital subchannel
WMBB's second digital subchannel operates as a CW-affiliated service through The CW Plus. It provides additional national network and syndicated programming to viewers in the Panama City market.
Weather and emergency information · 2005
Severe-weather coverage
Weather coverage is a major part of WMBB's market role because the station serves a hurricane-prone Gulf Coast region. The station has used specialized forecasting tools, online streaming, and extended live reporting during tropical storms and hurricanes.
Marketing campaigns
- 2005Hurricane Dennis live digital coverage
Panama City · Northwestern Florida Panhandle
WMBB provided live hurricane coverage over the internet during Hurricane Dennis, becoming the first Panama City station reported to do so. The station combined online distribution with advanced Titan forecasting visualization.
Outcome. The initiative strengthened WMBB's role as a regional severe-weather information provider and expanded its reach beyond conventional television broadcasting.
Brand decisions
2020
Production of WPGX 9 p.m. newscastProduct launchBackground
Nexstar used WMBB's newsroom and production resources to provide local news for another Panama City-market station.
Action taken
WMBB began producing an hour-long weeknight 9 p.m. newscast for Fox affiliate WPGX.
Aftermath
The arrangement continued until June 1, 2025, when the newscast ended.
2011
Launch of News 13 MiddayProduct launchBackground
WMBB sought to restore a midday local-news presence after having discontinued an earlier midday program in the late 1990s.
Action taken
The station introduced a weekday 11 a.m. to noon newscast beginning September 12.
Aftermath
The launch expanded WMBB's scheduled local-news inventory and reinforced its daytime news offering.
2009
Transition from analog to digital broadcastingStrategyBackground
United States full-power television stations were required to end analog broadcasting under the national digital transition.
Action taken
WMBB shut down its analog VHF channel 13 signal and moved its digital service to VHF channel 13 after operating pre-transition digitally on UHF channel 19.
Aftermath
The station continued as a digital broadcaster with its primary service and multicast programming.
1993
Decision not to air NYPD BlueOtherBackground
WMBB management objected to the content of ABC's police drama NYPD Blue and joined a small group of affiliates that did not initially clear the program.
Action taken
The station substituted syndicated sitcoms rather than airing the ABC series.
Aftermath
WMBB began carrying NYPD Blue in early 1997 after the introduction of television content guidelines and the V-chip.
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