Further development of stations in Pittsburgh was halted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)'s freeze on license awards, which ran from 1948 until 1952.

Hearst and the other three applicants that lost petitioned the FCC to re-open the permit hearings following the death of KQV co-owner Irwin D. Wolf.

The agency's commissioners were divided on how to break the stalemate to the satisfaction of both winning parties, and suggested a merger between Hearst and the KQV group, who sold their radio station to ABC to appease FCC cross-ownership restrictions.

Shortly before the station signed on, the FCC moved the channel 4 assignment to Pittsburgh proper following several years of petitioning by then-Pittsburgh mayor (and future Governor of Pennsylvania) David L. Lawrence.

WTAE-TV was thus short-spaced to other channel 4 stations in Detroit, Michigan; Columbus, Ohio; Oak Hill, West Virginia; Buffalo, New York; and Washington, D.C.; the transmitter was located southeast of the city as a result of the move.

This resulted in lotteries now being audited and monitored with "witnesses" from the government and/or accounting firms, and also inspired the movie Lucky Numbers.

[13] In 1986, WTAE-TV partnered with The Salvation Army and started Project Bundle Up, an operation to make sure that children and seniors receive warm clothing.

[14] In the early years, Channel 4 was best known in the market for its locally originated entertainment programming, including popular early program late night movie show Shock Theatre, which was hosted by former Pittsburgh radio disc jockey Bob Drews, who portrayed Sir Rodger (often misspelled as Sir Roger).

Shock Theatre featured monster movies such as The Invisible Man and Frankenstein in-between live-action comedic skits.

WTAE-TV also aired select Pittsburgh Pirates games via ABC's MLB broadcast contract from 1976 to 1989, including the team's 1979 World Series championship.

[17] ABC affiliate WYTV in Youngstown, Ohio, still aired Saving Private Ryan, giving viewers in the northern and western portions of WTAE-TV's viewing area the option of watching the film.

Like its NBC rival, WPXI, Channel 4 was not a major player in news coverage in its early years, as the Pittsburgh market was dominated by KDKA-TV and anchor Bill Burns.

In 1972, WTAE-TV sportscaster Myron Cope, thanks to a phone call from a female fan, introduced the phrase "The Immaculate Reception" to describe Franco Harris' miraculous, running shoestring catch that gave the Pittsburgh Steelers a 13–7 playoff victory over the Oakland Raiders (Cope chuckled at the woman's call, and responded, "I'm not sure I can say that!"

WTAE-TV and its channel 4 logo was immortalized in the 1979 basketball comedy film The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh, whose fictional sportscaster Murray Sports (played by Harry Shearer) was also patterned after Cope.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that WTAE-TV's on-air staff claimed it was being denied severance benefits for employees fired without cause, a minimum salary scale, overtime pay for work hours totaling more than eight hours a day, retirement benefits equalling those of other employees at the station, and consideration for unscheduled call-outs, split shifts and work on the sixth consecutive day and thereafter.

"We understand viewers are constantly looking for news, no matter what time of the day," said WTAE President & general manager Charles W. Wolfertz III.

Whether it's on our traditional broadcast station, on-line, or on a mobile device, WTAE Channel 4 is always looking for more ways to make it convenient for our viewers to get the local news and weather that's important to them.

"[23] In June 2013, WTAE-TV announced that longtime anchor Sally Wiggin would host WTAE Chronicle, a series of hour-long news specials dedicated to in-depth reporting on relevant topics to Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania.

The format was lifted from Boston sister station WCVB-TV, where their Chronicle has been on the air since 1982, albeit in the form of a weeknight, half-hour news-magazine.

Wiggin shifted from her role as anchor of WTAE-TV's noon newscast to focus on WTAE Chronicle and additional station projects.

The seventh edition called Chronicle: Taste of the 'Burgh was aired to massive ratings and focused on Pittsburgh's growing "Foodie" culture, its impact on the local economy, employment, and national attention.

Chronicle: After War, the ninth installment of the series, examined the life of Western Pennsylvania's military men, women and their families after the battle has ended.

In March 2008, the station won a Freedom of Information Award and an IRE Medal from the Investigative Reporters and Editors for "pushing open the front door" of the state-run student loan agency.

[31] In August 2014, it was announced that WTAE-TV was nominated for 25 Emmy Awards by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Wiggin joined an elite group of Commonwealth broadcasters, and four former WTAE inductees, whose distinguished service has made a positive impact on audiences and the industry.

[34] On August 11, 2015, it was announced that WTAE-TV had been honored with 18 Emmy Award nominations by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the Mid-Atlantic Region.

[40] WTAE news anchor Wendy Bell was fired in March 2016 after posting comments following the 2016 Wilkinsburg shooting, including: "You needn't be a criminal profiler to draw a mental sketch of the killers who broke so many hearts two weeks ago Wednesday... they are young black men.

[46] Bell has since become a controversial conservative talk radio host with runs at KDKA and WJAS, expressing skepticism regarding COVID-19 vaccinations and the validity of the 2020 presidential election.

On January 1, 2018, WTAE-TV replaced This on WTAE-DT2 with Cozi TV upon the end of Hearst's carriage agreement with parent Tribune Broadcasting for that network.

As part of the SAFER Act, WTAE kept its analog signal on the air until July 12 to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop of public service announcements from the National Association of Broadcasters.