When Miami TV channels make a big switch, here’s where you’ll find ABC and Fox
Some may recall the retro TV advertisement: “Don’t touch that channel!”
The new local message is also designed to keep you watching, but with a twist: “DO change that channel!”
An agreement was reached to broadcast the new ABC Miami after an announcement in the spring that WPLG-Channel 10 would be breaking up with the network after nearly 70 years. On Aug. 4, the ABC network broadcast started airing via WSVN.
WPLG will remain as Channel 10, but it will no longer carry ABC programming as of Aug 4. The station will go independent, airing more local news and other local content.
That’s when the new ABC Miami will be available in high definition on Channel 18 across most cable and satellite platforms, plus Channel 18.1 and 7.2 for over-the-air televisions using an antenna. That’s where you’ll find ABC prime time fare as well as traditional network news programs including “Good Morning America” and “World News Tonight with David Muir.”
On July 9, WPLG announced a multiyear partnership with HBCU GO Sports, a media provider for America’s historically Black colleges and universities. The station will broadcast HBCU GO’s live coverage of regular season football and men’s basketball games starting with an Aug. 30 football game between Hampton University and Jackson State University.
Daytona Beach’s Bethune-Cookman University and Tallahassee’s Florida A&M University are among the featured HBCU programs.
In late June, Miami-based Sunbeam Television Corp., parent company of WSVN-Channel 7, announced a multiyear agreement with Sunrise-based Findal Media & Technology Group to broadcast the new ABC Miami. The agreement comes months after Disney Entertainment and Sunbeam announced a new affiliation agreement, bringing ABC’s lineup of network shows, live sports and national news to a new home in South Florida.
WSVN-Channel 7, the Miami and Fort Lauderdale FOX affiliate, will carry ABC programming on Channel 18.1. “7 News” will be simulcast on ABC Miami and also stay on WSVN.
What are the new station numbers?
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Here’s how you will find your favorites on ABC and Fox once the channel switch goes into effect on Aug. 4:
▪ Fox programming and “7 News” that you currently watch on WSVN Channel 7 remains where it is. You can watch Fox broadcast network content and the 13 hours of local news WSVN airs after the swap the same way you currently do: On Channel 7. “7 News” will also be simulcast on the new ABC Miami channel numbers. WPLG’s local news will now be independent, no longer an ABC affiliate, and remain on Channel 10.
▪ ABC over-the-air, in high definition, will be on Channel 18.1 or 7.2.
▪ ABC on cable and digital television providers in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market:
— Xfinity/Comcast: Tune to Channel 18 in standard definition (SD) and Channels 446 and 1018 in high definition on Xfinity/Comcast. (Note: Most smart TVs automatically route channels to the high definition (HD) version even if you select the standard definition number.)
— DirecTV, AT&T and Breezeline: Tune to Channel 18.
— Hotwire will carry ABC Miami on Channel 403 (HD) and Channel 3 (SD).
— Blue Stream will carry ABC Miami on Channel 3 (HD).
▪ Streaming platforms:
— YouTube TV, Hulu, Fubo and DirecTV Stream for ABC Miami, tune to Channel 18 or click on the thumbnail for the channel on the platform’s main page. For example, on Hulu that’s how most of you probably found your current South Florida WPLG/ABC content by clicking on its page on the Hulu menu.
Troubleshooting
For some AT&T UVerse customers, Channel 18 wasn’t working on the Monday morning of the switch, based on several calls to the Miami Herald. A simple reboot — unplugging the TV and cable box for about 30 seconds and simply replugging it back in — refreshed the system and ABC appeared where it belonged on Channel 18.
This story was originally published July 8, 2025 at 5:21 AM.
