In an unexpected change of schedule, GMA decided to move ‘In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley’ to an even earlier timeslot, at the wee hours of 4:00 a.m. Then come 6:00 a.m., a mix of cartoons and anime started airing on the network.
What GMA did is disrespectful and insulting to the Christian religion. Sunday is supposed to be a day of relaxation, rest, recreation and recollection, and yet GMA decided to become desperate by airing cartoons at 6:00 a.m. in hopes of drawing more kids who lacked the motivation to go to church. It is a counter-programming strategy that has gone too far, and GMA deserves a lot of flak for it.
Putting cartoons on an early Sunday morning were nothing new to GMA. Older viewers of the network may remember the time when ‘Word of Hope’ and Cathedral of Praise’s ‘Dawn of Revival’ were being aired before the general entertainment programs. That was back when GMA’s logo was a rainbow. But once the network decided to change its logo into a rainbow-colored heart, they decided to drop most of the religious programs by 7:00 a.m. and air animated programs. From then on its religious programming was restricted to the sunrise hours, before relegating them to the wee hours as of today.
GMA should realize that the majority of the Philippine population remains under the Roman Catholic religion. Going to church, if not watch the whole mass on television, is an obligation for every Catholic family. But by counter-programming them with cartoons every Sunday at 6:00 a.m., GMA seems to promote the notion that they are ‘anti-Catholic’, and in doing so, they try to lure away people from the church and back into their homes, which is not a good idea.
In the end, GMA’s decision to counter-program the Sunday Mass with cartoons will backfire on them. Sorry to the loyal Kapuso viewers, but it is a decision that definitely does not sit well within the Catholic majority in the Philippines.
Notes: Family Rosary Crusade resumed its broadcasts on the new ABS-CBN Sports+Action yesterday. It now airs at 5:00 a.m. Also, the Healing Eucharist on ABS-CBN Channel 2 is now simulcast on Sports+Action Channel 23 every Sunday at 6:00 a.m.
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