to CBS. On July 17, 1996, News Corporation announced that it would acquire New World in an all-stock transaction worth $2.48 billion, bringing its ten Fox affiliates under network ownership. Under Fox ownership, WJW added stronger first-run syndicated shows as well as stronger off-network sitcoms to the programming mix. It was the only fully network owned-and-operated station among the "Big Four" network outlets in the Cleveland area, and was the only Fox-owned station to carry a historic 1920s three-letter call sign. It remains the only Fox television affiliate to utilize a three-letter call sign. On December 22, 2007, Fox sold WJW-TV and seven other owned-and-operated stations to Local TV for $1.1 billion; the sale was finalized on July 14, 2008. On July 1, 2013, the Tribune Company acquired the Local TV stations for $2.75 billion; the sale was completed on December 27. Aborted sale to Sinclair; sale to Nexstar Sinclair Broadcast Group announced that it would acquire Tribune Media on May 8, 2017, for $3.9 billion, plus the assumption of $2.7 billion in debt held by Tribune. In order to meet regulatory compliance for the merger, WJW was subsequently identified as one of 23 stations that would be divested with Fox Television Stations agreeing to repurchase the station as part of a $910-million deal with Sinclair. Both transactions were nullified on August 9, 2018, following Tribune's move to terminate their merger with Sinclair and lead FCC commissioner Ajit Pai's public rejection of the deal, with Tribune filing a breach of contract lawsuit against Sinclair in the process. Following the collapse of the Sinclair merger, Tribune Media agreed to be acquired by Nexstar Media Group on December 3, 2018, for $6.4 billion in cash and debt. The sale was approved by the FCC on September 16, 2019, and completed three days later; Fox declined to reacquire WJW after the sale closed. Programming Syndicated programming In addition to the Fox network schedule, syndicated programs broadcast on WJW include Judge Judy, Daily Mail TV, The Big Bang Theory and The Real. The Dr. Oz Show (hosted by Cleveland native Dr. Mehmet Oz) had been on a local hiatus as of December 1, 2021, due to equal-time rules related to Oz's 2022 campaign for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania as WJW's fringe signal is able to be accessed in parts of northwestern Pennsylvania; the show ended its 13-season run on January 14, 2022, with its