On May 2, 1986, WRBT was the first local station in Baton Rouge and the first NBC affiliate in Louisiana to broadcast in stereo, after WYES and WNOL in New Orleans and KMSS-TV in Shreveport. It changed its calls to WVLA on November 26, 1987, after building a higher and more powerful tower that boosted its signal to a full five million watts. From April 1990 until February 1991, the station took a secondary affiliation with Fox by airing week-delayed episodes of "The Simpsons", "In Living Color", and "Married... with Children".