WPXI taken off Verizon’s FiOS TV in retransmission spat

Following weeks of negotiations and threats of a looming impasse, Verizon failed to reach agreement on a new retransmission deal with WPXI parent company Cox Media Group and Pittsburgh’s Channel 11 is no longer available to subscribers to Verizon’s FiOS TV.

“The telecom giant is blocking viewers’ access to breaking local news and weather, emergency information, live major sports, and other popular entertainment programming,” Cox said in a statement, pointing out that Channel 11 going dark comes “as key NFL matchups are set to air; college football nears the playoffs; and NBA, college basketball, and holiday programming get into full swing.”

Cox said it continues to “work in good faith to try to negotiate a new retransmission consent agreement with Verizon/Fios.”

The current agreement expired December 15, 2025, and also impacts a Cox station in Boston.

A Verizon representative did not respond with a dueling statement as of this writing.

Reiner remembered

ABC News is putting together “The Rob Reiner Story: A Hollywood Tragedy,” a special report airing at 10 p.m. Tuesday on WTAE (streaming Wednesday on Disney+ and Hulu) about the murder of the actor/director and his wife, allegedly by their son.

The one-hour special will explore the lives and careers of Rob and Michele Reiner as well as the investigation into their deaths.

Channel surfing

Amazon Prime Video’s “Fallout,” which was not made available for review nor were producers made available for interviews as of this column’s deadline, will debut Dec. 16 at 9 p.m., a day earlier than planned. … Awards-nominated film “One Battle After Another” streams on HBO Max Dec. 19. … Following the success of last month’s reunion special, CBS has decided to put together what ended up on the cutting room floor to create “Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Special Reunion Pt. 2,” airing at 8 p.m. Dec. 22.

You can reach TV writer Rob Owen at rowen@triblive.com or 412-380-8559. Follow @RobOwenTV on Threads, X/Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky and Facebook. Ask TV questions by email or phone. Please include your first name and location.