WOGX is the Fox owned-and-operated (O&O) television station for North Central Florida that is licensed to Ocala. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 31 from a transmitter along CR 316 west of I-75/FL 93 and the Heijahs Town section of Reddick. WOGX has studios and sales offices on Southwest 37th Avenue in Ocala along I-75/FL 93 as well as sales offices on Northwest 43rd Street in Gainesville.
Although considered a separate station WOGX is a sister station to WOFL- FOX 35 in Orlando. This channel airs separate commercials and station identifications. Master control of WOGX is located at the WOFL and WRBW studios on Skyline Drive along I-4 in Lake Mary. It is the smallest station in the country that is a O&O of any major network.
History
The station began as independent WBSP-TV on November 1, 1983. The original owners, Big Sun Television, sold WBSP to Wabash Valley Broadcasting of Terre Haute, Indiana in 1986 [1] who changed the call letters to the current WOGX in 1987. In 1991, the station became a Fox affiliate. Prior to this, Gainesville did not have a Fox affiliate of its own with the local Cox system not carrying any of the nearest Fox affiliates (WOFL, Tampa Bay's WTOG (through 1988 when Fox moved to WFTS-TV), or Jacksonville's WAWS). Marion County had received Fox through WOFL and WTOG (until 1988). Citrus County (which is assigned to the Tampa Bay market but is considered by WOGX to be within its viewing area) received Fox from W49AI (now WYKE-LP). At the time, this was a repeater of WOFL (except for late-night programming as W49AI signed-off at midnight). W49AI was forced to discontinue Fox and WOFL programming upon WOGX's affiliation.
In 1996, WOGX was sold to the Meredith Corporation [2] and had its operations moved to WOFL's studios. In 2002, Meredith sold WOFL and WOGX to Fox Television Stations in a deal that also saw Meredith obtain KPTV in Portland, Oregon. This made WOFL and WOGX Fox owned-and-operated stations as well as sister to WRBW (then a UPN affiliate). WOGX began simulcasting WOFL's newscasts when they launched in March 1998. It airs all news programs from that station except weeknights at 6. Sometime in late-2009, this channel redesigned its website to match other Fox-owned stations (including WOFL) although it still does not use a "My Fox" style web address. The station has been using a logo which is similar to those of the other Fox O&O stations for the past two years.
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