In 1955, the Hederman family and Standard Life Insurance Company opted to combine both stations' operations. On June 1, 1955, WSLI-TV signed off, and WJTV moved to channel 12 (using WSLI-TV's license); WSLI radio remained on the air and became a sister to WJTV. The combined station was a primary CBS affiliate with secondary affiliations with ABC and DuMont. The new channel 12 also shared ABC programming with WLBT until 1970, when WAPT started operations on channel 16. WJTV was also affiliated with NBC and broadcast "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" until September 1966 when it was carried by NBC affiliate WLBT. (Carson had attended Millsaps College in Jackson.)