Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2018, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at some of the Hot or Not moments that define the Philippine media this year.
If you missed out on Part I of this series, click on the highlighted link for more information.
Here is Part II of the four-part series. These stories are arranged in no particular order.
HOT: Ben and Erwin Tulfo
The two Tulfo brothers began the year as hosts of their respective programs (Ben for ‘Bitag Live’, Erwin for ‘Punto Asintado’) on Radyo5 92.3 News FM. But after a highly-publicized feud with journalist Ed Lingao last June, Ben and Erwin elected to quit their jobs with Radyo5 and move over to PTV-4 (where they host ‘Kilos Pronto’ with Alex Santos) and Radyo Pilipinas full-time.
While Ben moved ‘Bitag Live’ to join its sister programs over to PTV-4, Erwin returned to newscasting with ‘Radyo Pilipinas Nationwide’ and ‘PTV News’ where he is joined by Weng dela Peña and Diane Querrer respectively. Erwin also brought his ‘Erwin Tulfo Live’ over to Radyo Pilipinas and started a talk show with President Rodrigo Duterte called ‘Sa Totoo Lang’.
NOT: Raffy Tulfo
Meanwhile, the lone remaining Tulfo on TV5 continued to butcher the already damaged reputation of its news division by changing the format anew of ‘Aksyon sa Tanghali’. As a result, the erstwhile newscast became a full-on television counterpart to Raffy’s radio program ‘Wanted sa Radyo’ by emphasizing more on citizen complaints than actual news reports.
Notwithstanding the recent addition of Marga Vargas as co-anchor, it was clear that having Raffy on ‘Aksyon sa Tanghali’ is doing more harm than good to News5’s morale. Perhaps the departure of his brothers plus News5’s decline in quality may have taken its toll on Raffy, and giving him the walking papers may be inevitable.
HOT: DZMM TeleRadyo and Dobol B sa News TV
In April, a new-look DZMM TeleRadyo was unveiled to a nationwide audience, featuring an improved visual presentation and a new set for ‘Sakto’, ‘Good Vibes’, ‘On the Spot’ and ‘Todo-Todo Walang Preno’. They also added a selection of ABS-CBN News programs and two newscasts to the lineup in ‘Headline Pilipinas’ and an ‘early edition’ of ‘Bandila’.
Not to be outdone, rival Super Radyo DZBB 594 returned to television via ‘Dobol B sa News TV’ after a four-year hiatus. The station also started to cross over to social media by airing select programs live on Facebook, much like DZMM does on occasion.
NOT: News5 in General
The self-destruction of News5 continued throughout the year. Not only did the network lose Ben and Erwin Tulfo among other talents, they also cancelled ‘Aksyon sa Umaga’ and shortened ‘Aksyon Tonite’ in favor of sports programming from ESPN5.
It also didn’t help that its leader Luchi Cruz-Valdes disappeared from radio and television altogether due to health concerns. Overall, the future does not look bright for News5 and the inevitability of dissolution draws even closer as each day passes.
HOT: 97.9 Home Radio
Call it a rebirth as the ‘old’ 97.9 Home Radio returned to the airwaves last July. Gone is the Top 40 style of previous years, and to the delight of its loyal listeners, Home Radio resurrected its familiar ‘easy listening’ format.
The reformat of Home Radio back to its roots should give 96.3 Easy Rock a run for its money. After all, with Easy Rock offering a bland Love Radio-like approach, a more diverse playlist is more than enough for listeners to switch to Home Radio instead.
NOT: 90.7 Love Radio
They may continue to boast that they were the No. 1 radio station in Metro Manila for nearly (self-proclaimed) two decades now, but the grip is slipping for 90.7 Love Radio. The loss of Papa Jack (now 106.7 Energy FM’s Papa Jackson) became too large of a hole to fill, and despite having the talented duo of Chris Tsuper and Nicole Hyala, this year overall is not a good one for Love Radio.
Getting surpassed by MOR 101.9 in the ratings is insult to injury to Love Radio’s psyche. And if that is not enough, Lloyd Cafe Cadena is no Papa Jackson, which is hard to accept for any listener of the said station.
HOT: FM1 and FM2
The two FM stations under the PCOO umbrella officially signed on this year: 104.3 FM2 in February and 87.5 FM1 in November. Within months, FM2 became the top-rated FM radio station among the upscale listening public thanks in large part to their diverse format featuring classic songs from the 70s up to the 90s.
As for FM1, the station is currently in test broadcast and is expected to launch early next year. Unlike FM2, FM1 will focus on the younger demographic with a format consisting of music from the 2000s onwards, which should give established stations like Magic 89.9 and Monster RX 93.1 a run for their money.
NOT: Retro 105.9
The original ‘retro’ FM radio station in Metro Manila faced new competition in the form of FM2 this year. Initially, Retro 105.9 was the top FM radio station among Metro Manila’s upscale listeners, but a surge from FM2 ended their reign.
Making matters worse is Retro 105.9’s latest rebrand that took place in November, dismissing almost all of its on-air staff in favor of a mostly automated approach. With FM2 imposing its will on the upscale market, it seems like the days of Retro 105.9 as the source of anything ‘retro’ music is being numbered by the day.
Part III of this four-part series is coming up this Thursday. Stay tuned.
From the Tube 
I have mixed assessment on this part:
I agree with on two NOTS:
* News5: (pardon my presidential language) Miguel Belmonte is a douchebag (PI)! He wasn’t able to take any of your reforms on Radyo5 92.3 News FM.
* Love 90.7: Thankfully, RX 93.1 dethroned them as the Best FM station on the KBP Golden Dove Awards this year.
But I speak otherwise on one HOT:
* The two Tulfo Brothers: Despite placing it back to its proper place, it lures the DDS more on their opinionated views.
LCV disappearing from the limelight pretty much spells the end for News5. Can’t wait for Chot Reyes to dissolve the division altogether. Regarding Love Radio, their incessant boasting may have cost them the KBP Golden Dove Award as Best FM Station. Why can’t they just stay humble for once.
As for the Tulfo brothers, the only positive they have is escaping the increasingly horrible conditions within News5. But as the so-called ‘allies’ of Duterte going to PTV-4 may sound biased and insane since all they do is speak positively about him.
As for Home, since returning to easy listening, they went #8 on the latest Nielsen ratings, just two notches Easy Rock, which was at #6.
I’m pretty sure that Home might dethrone Easy Rock as the #1 easy listening station in the Metro in the upcoming year, thanks to its diverse playlist and their current aim to attract both upscale and masa audiences, lalo na yung mga nasasawa na sa Easy Rock na parang nighttime playlist ng Love Radio ang dating.
As for Radyo5, death is inevitable at malapit nang mag-self destruct. Better sell 92.3 to Brigada (naging hybrid station na as of late ang kanilang flagship station with nationwide newscasts in Makati, with the addition of local news programming out of Batangas) or any other more deserving station owners.
Home is perhaps the better alternative to Easy Rock, pero meron din namang Wish 1075 at RJ 100.3 for all their easy listening needs.
Regarding Radyo5, we can’t wait to see it disappear for good. And yeah, either MVP sells it or reformat it into an easy listening station.
Okay I’m sorry. BTW I hope next year magiging privatized na ang IBC 13.
Sinsabi na natin yan every year pero usad pagong pa rin ito. Kesa sa umasa ka pa maghintay ka na lang kung anong susunod na mangyayari.
News5 is now known as WorthlessNews5.
Alam ko. Huwag ka nga maging Captain Obvious. Saka mag-Tagalog ka naman kahit minsan. Total Filipino ka naman.
Okay bruh. BTW ang wish ko next year, bumawi ang Kapamilya Gold against Afternoon Prime (even though I don’t either ABS or GMA), ibalik ng Retro and DJ’s, umalis na si Raffy Tulfo sa TV5, maging strong pa rin ang DZMM at DZBB, maging privatized na ang IBC-13 at ma-disband na ang NEWS5.
*ang DJ’s.
Sana lang matupad ang mga pangarap mo dahil hindi magiging madali ang mga gagawin nila. Mahaba-habang panahon ang next year kaya maghintay ka lang.
Okay. BTW advanced Happy Holidays, my friend.
I remember hearing “Nothing Else Matters” by Metallica dun sa Wish 107.5.
Different from the norm ika nga. Kaya nga feeling Top 40 station ang Wish 1075 even though it was technically an easy listening station due to its style.
BTW FM2 is the new retro station in Mega Manila. I mean, fave station ko na rin yun.
Obvious naman diba. Huwag ka nga halata. Alam natin na sila ang bagong retro station. And yes, many more are tuning in to FM2 than Retro 105.9 dahil mas malawak ang playlist at may mga mas bata at experienced DJs pa sila, not to mention they got the much-needed support (galing kay PCOO pa ang mga pondo nila).
And of course Sonny B and Carlo Jose running the ship helps in building up PBS’s FM Division to the right path. Also bringing in their style that made Magic 89.5 and Play FM a huge success helps in building a identity separate from their AM counterparts.
They really brought stability and experience to the fold. Contrast that to Retro 105.9 where they failed to find those qualities in their three years of existence.
Speaking of easy listening stations, even MOR 101.9 was a clone of Easy Rock and Home Radio from the late ’80s to the mid-90s. It was then known as Radio Romance. For you to remember that branding, listen to this jingle:
We’re not dwelling on the way distant past here, ok? We’re talking about 2017 in this article. If you want to talk about the past, go make your own blog.
It feels good to be home or It’s Just the Rite Rock. I listen to both Home Radio and Easy Rock.
There’s also Wish 1075 and RJ 100.3, the former more of a Top 40 feel in an easy listening station.
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If only government upgrades PTV and it’s radio stations, just like in Japan with their NHK, that’s a nice competition.
And someone kick Ed Lingao, he just killed NEWS5.
Like I said, Ed Lingao was not the problem. In fact, he’s the only reason why News5 is still in it. His feud with the Tulfos was only an appetizer for the bigger picture, which is News5’s inability to replace departed talent and programs. Plus LCV has personal and health issues lately which only makes it worse.
As for PTV, let Martin Andanar do his magic touch. We’ll wait.