Update 01/04/2012: Raycom Media announced Friday night it has reached an agreement with COX Cable that will allow WAFB-TV to return to the COX lineup. COX promised to return WAFB’s signal by no later than noon Saturday but hoped it would be restored even sooner.
Original: Cox Communications and Raycom Media continue negotiations on a contract with terms they can both accept. WAFB Channel 7 is no longer available on the Cox lineup in Baton Rouge as of January 1st, but viewers are still able to see news repeats on cable channel 9. WAFB notes that their signal is still available for free over the air. They are now streaming their channel live on wafb.com, here.
From WAFB.com: The company that owns WAFB has still been unable to reach an agreement on rates with COX Cable. Every other provider in our community agrees our rate is fair, which is why we remain available on all other providers. You pay 100% of your cable bill and you simply deserve to get 100% of your channels from COX! Cox’s claim that Raycom is asking for an unreasonable rate increase is misleading. In fact, the increase Raycom is seeking amounts to less than 2 cents a day per household.
We are going to keep working to resolve this matter with COX cable and get back on the COX lineup as soon as possible. But in the meantime, you have choices. WAFB is available on all other local TV providers. And, you can always get us free over-the-air.
Our newscasts remain available on COX Cable Channel 9 which is under a different agreement. We are also streaming our newscasts live on wafb.com and our mobile applications. You can access CBS programming through the “programming” tab on our website.
Please continue to check wafb.com for updates. Thank you for your viewership and your support.
From Cox.com: Raycom has pulled their programming from Cox’s lineup for Cox customers in Virginia, Florida, Ohio, Louisiana and Arizona. Cox’s agreement with Raycom Media expired at 11:59 p.m., December 31, 2012. 
Raycom is withholding their programming because Cox won’t give them a price increase that’s 250% higher than what Cox already pays them for programming that is available for free over the air. Exorbitant increases – like the one that Raycom is demanding – increase cable bills every year. Cox is actively negotiating to get the channels back at a reasonable price.
Raycom TV stations for Cox customers include: KOLD (Tucson, AZ); WOIO/WUAB (Cleveland, OH): WPGX (Panama City, FL); WAFB/WBXH (Baton Rouge, LA); KPLC (Lake Charles, LA); and WWBT/WUPV (Richmond-Petersburg, VA)
