WFLA history

Channel 8 began broadcasting in colour on 1 May 1974.

In 1978, all its Chinese language programming as well as advertisements, as a result of the government's Speak Mandarin Campaign, were broadcast solely in the Mandarin dialect.

In the fall of 1982, Channel 8 debuted the country's pioneer Mandarin language drama series, Seletar Robbery.

At first, Channel 8 drama productions used 16mm film, before transitioning to videotape in 1987–88, in contrast its variety programming (either live or taped) had always been videotape productions since the start of colour television.

Sook, 38, had worked since high school in both on-air and sales jobs in the broadcasting industry, and in 1991 had founded Superior Communications Group, which acquired television stations in Kentucky and Oklahoma before selling them to Sinclair Broadcast Group for $63 million.

The issue was impacted by a 1992 federal law giving broadcasters the right to require cable systems to carry their signals in a local area, which allowed for negotiations about terms.

Channel 8 began broadcasting in colour on 1 May 1974. It started airing 24 hours a day on 1 September 1995, becoming a Mandarin-language only channel as all its Tamil programs were transferred to a new channel, Prime 12.

Morrow, Darrell, "Sook Leaves Channel 34 for New Firm," Journal Record , June 4, 1996.

CEO Sook was paid a $4 million "success fee" when the IPO was completed, which he used in part to pay back a $3 million loan he had taken out in the company's behalf in 1998.

"Nexstar Builds a Mini Empire in the Midwest," Mediaweek , July 19, 1999.

In 2000 the firm purchased KMID of Midland/Odessa, Texas, for $10 million and KTAL of Shreveport, Louisiana, for $35 million.

For 2001 the firm had revenues of $110.7 million and a loss of $39.5 million.

"TV Broadcaster Nexstar Sets IPO Terms," Reuters News , May 31, 2002.

The company went public in 2003 shortly after acquiring Quorum Broadcasting and other stations that doubled Nexstar’s station portfolio.

In 2005, Nexstar and Sook took a historic stand by requesting payment from pay-TV services for retransmission of local programming, forging a new type of relationship that benefited not only Nexstar, but all local broadcasters.

The Company’s continued execution led to the 2016 purchase of 71 television stations and the digital media properties of Media General, which made Nexstar one of the country’s leading local media companies.