Owned by Mission Broadcasting, the station is operated by CW majority owner Nexstar Media Group under a local marketing agreement (LMA).

Beginning in the late 1970s and continuing through spring 1982, the station aired "TV PIXX", a television video game show played during commercial breaks of afternoon programs.

[8] Another notable programming stunt was Shocktober, where for the entire month of October, various horror and thriller films were played; this occurred for several years in the early 1990s, and became a cult favorite among area viewers.

Its relaunch featured a series of humorous promos in which a fictional station employee, "Henry Tillman", was searching for a "big idea" for something uniquely New York in nature to serve as the perfect WPIX symbol.

The running gag in these ads was the fact that Tillman was constantly surrounded by – but never noticed – objects resembling a giant "11", most notably the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

In 1978, WPIX was uplinked to satellite and became a superstation that was distributed to cable providers throughout the U.S. (many providers carried WPIX's signal until the early 1990s, when most systems outside of the Northeastern United States began replacing WPIX with the superstation feed of WGN-TV,[14] though the station continues to be distributed through Dish Network domestically (which since it halted sales of the package to new subscribers in September 2013, is available only to grandfathered subscribers of its a la carte superstation tier) and on most cable and satellite providers throughout Canada).

Initially, WPIX's programming remained unchanged, as The WB had broadcast only prime time shows on Wednesday nights at its launch.

By September 1999, when The WB completed its prime time expansion and the network began running its programming Sunday through Friday nights, movies were limited to Saturday evenings and weekend afternoons.

On September 11, 2001, the transmitter facilities of WPIX, and several other New York City area television and radio stations were destroyed when two hijacked airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center; both of the complex's main towers collapsed due to fires caused by the impact.

[23] The station's coverage of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack was notable in that WPIX's helicopter was the last to land following an FAA directive that grounded all aircraft.

[25][26][27] As part of the announcement, Tribune signed ten-year affiliation agreements with the network for 16 of its 19 WB-affiliated stations, including WPIX.

WPIX began transitioning its on-air branding to "CW 11" during the summer of 2006; prior to the start of the station's 10 p.m. newscast on September 17, 2006 (which aired following The WB's final night of programming and the night prior to The CW's official launch), shortly after airing the WB's final sign off bumper featuring stars from the WB's shows, the station aired a video montage of past WPIX logos, starting with a 1948 test pattern and concluding with the official unveiling of the new "CW11" logo.

[29] On April 2, 2007, investor Sam Zell announced plans to purchase the Tribune Company, with intentions to take the publicly traded firm private.

[30] Prior to the sale's closure, WPIX had been the only commercial television station in New York City to have never been involved in an ownership transaction (Tribune subsequently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2008, due to debt accrued from Zell's leveraged buyout and costs from the company's privatization; it emerged from bankruptcy in December 2012 under the control of its senior debt holders Oaktree Capital Management, Angelo, Gordon & Co. and JPMorgan Chase).

[35] The stations and WGN America were restored in an agreement reached on October 26, following a plea by Connecticut State Senator Gayle Slossberg for the FCC to intervene in the dispute.

[49] Tribune Media moved to terminate the merger outright on August 9, 2018, and filed a breach of contract lawsuit in the process.

[52] WPIX-TV was then sold by Nexstar to the E. W. Scripps Company for $75 million as part of a series of divestitures totaling $1.32 billion; both transactions were completed on September 19, 2019.

WPIX was also noted[citation needed] for the many post–news editorials that were delivered by Richard N. Hughes, vice president of news operations from 1969 to 1995.

[62] Concurrent with the challenge to its license, WPIX began airing nine public-service programs in mid-1969, including Puerto Rican New Yorker, Black Pride, Suburban Closeup, Focus New Jersey, Everywoman, Rendezvous, Jewish Dimension, Sesame Street, and The Green Thumb.

On April 26, 2008, WPIX became the fourth television station in New York City to begin broadcasting its local newscasts in high definition.

The station resumed a half-hour early evening newscast on September 14, 2009, that ran nightly at 6:30 pm,[65][66] until it was replaced by syndicated reruns on June 27, 2010.

[69] On October 11, 2010, newly appointed news director Bill Carey instituted controversial format changes for the newscasts in an attempt to boost the station's ratings.

Carey made the newscasts flashier than they had previously been; Kaity Tong and Jim Watkins were replaced as anchors of the weeknight 10 p.m. broadcasts by Jodi Applegate, and multiple commentators and an edgy graphics and music package were introduced.

The revamped newscast's first week was not well received by most viewers or critics, with the station fielding numerous complaints through phone calls, emails and Facebook comments,[70] as well as a scathing review in the Daily News.

[72][73] On September 12, 2011, WPIX restored an early evening newscast to its weeknight schedule with the debut of an hour-long 5 p.m. broadcast, which was originally aimed at women between the ages of 18 and 49.

[80] On April 20, 2015, WPIX debuted a 6 p.m. newscast on weekdays with current evening anchors John Muller and Tamsen Fadal.

[81] On December 8, 2015, WPIX announced the hiring of former WWOR anchor Brenda Blackmon, and the addition of a new 6:30 p.m. program, to rival the network news on the other main stations.

Kori Chambers, formerly on the morning show, and weekend evenings, will co-anchor with Tamsen Fadal on the weekday 5 p.m. version and handle political coverage for the station.

Mel Allen served as the primary announcer for the broadcasts, Red Barber from 1954 to 1966, Phil Rizzuto from 1957 to 1996, and Bobby Murcer from 1997 to 1998.

The station's ATSC 1.0 channels are carried on the multiplexed signals of other New York City television stations: WPIX ended regular programming on its analog signal, over VHF channel 11, at 12:30 p.m. on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.