Underrated College Basketball Leagues Try to Etch Footprints on Philippine TV

The 2016 NAASCU basketball tournament is just one of three under-the-radar collegiate basketball competitions that received ample airtime on television this year. (Photo credit: Philippine Daily Inquirer)

The UAAP and the NCAA are not the only collegiate basketball tournaments that are making hoop fans jump for joy.

This year, three other college basketball tournaments are getting their much-needed due by way of television exposure. They are:

• NAASCU (National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities)
• CESAFI (Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc.)
• UCBL (Universities and Colleges Basketball League)

The NAASCU is the third most popular collegiate sports league in the country behind the UAAP and the NCAA. The league is also the biggest membership-wise among the three, with a total of 14 member schools.

This year, the NAASCU men’s basketball tournament was televised via Solar Sports and Basketball TV, with the finals of the men’s, women’s and juniors tournaments also airing on the said networks. It marked the first time that the whole NAASCU tournament was aired on television; previous coverors in IBC-13 and Net 25 aired a select amount of games, with the latter focusing in particular on the Iglesia ni Cristo-owned New Era University teams.

The CESAFI, on the other hand, is the top collegiate sports league in the Visayas. Although the CESAFI is not as well-recognized as its Metro Manila counterparts, it nevertheless carved its own niche in the Filipino hoops scene by producing stars such as current Ginebra big man Greg Slaughter and San Miguel center June Mar Fajardo.

The 12-member CESAFI currently airs its basketball tournament on AksyonTV, and is produced by VIVA Sports. Previously, the games were aired on IBC-13.

And speaking of IBC-13, a new league began to sprout on the said channel. That league, the UCBL, is exclusively a basketball-only league unlike its fellow contemporaries, with seven schools from all over Luzon participating.

The UCBL games are produced by the Asian Television Content Corporation, the same outfit that produced the NAASCU and the PBA D-League on IBC-13. The deal to air the games was set a month ago, even as the network continues its privatization process.

Indeed, college basketball in the Philippines is on the upswing. Although the UAAP and the NCAA continue to be the darlings of the sport, the less heralded trio in the NAASCU, CESAFI and UCBL now try to find their own niche, and this should benefit the game of basketball as a whole in the country.

PRR 2015: Philippine Radio in Review

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2016, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio.

Our friend MC’s Corner will look back at the events that shaped Philippine radio in 2015. Enjoy.

MC's Corner

2015 is about to end in a few days. But before we bid goodbye to this year, here is a look back at what happened in the world of Philippine Radio. This article will analyze on the Top 10 newcomers, comebacks, reformats & restructures in Metro Manila (and a few in other key cities).

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This list ranges from newcomers to restructures to ventures.

1. 8TriMedia’s Big Move

8TriMedia Broadcasting

Late last year, 8TriMedia, a media company of Jojo Soliman, began as a blocktimer on DZJV 1458, airing its programs during nighttime (6pm onwards).

Last April, 8TM bought time from DWBL 1242 to air its programs. From 4 programs, they expanded to 7 on this 20-Kw station. The roster is consisted of veteran newscaster Miguel Gil, singers Lloyd Umali & Ima Castro, showbiz columnists Shalala & Rodel Fernando, and former Manila mayor Fred Lim, among others.

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Overview of PNoy’s Final SONA Coverage

Eyes will be on President Noynoy Aquino as he makes his final State of the Nation Address. (Photo credit: Philstar.com)

Welcome to SONA Monday.

Held every fourth Monday of July, the State of the Nation Address is an annual event where the President of the Philippines addresses the public of his accomplishments and plans for the nation. While the SONA is not a national holiday, it remains an important political event in the country, ranking just above the presidential inauguration and the national elections.

This year’s SONA will be the last for President Noynoy Aquino, and it will be interesting to see how he will respond to the recent string events that have plagued his administration. As always, it will be greeted by protests from those against his administration.

Television and radio coverage will once again be at the forefront of this annual event, so without further ado, here are the plans for some of the stations covering the SONA.

ABS-CBN

The SONA coverage on Channel 2 will proceed after ‘Flordeliza’. ‘Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita’, ‘Pinoy Big Brother: 737 Gold’ and ‘Mission Possible’ will be preempted, while ‘Kapamilya: Deal or No Deal’ may be preempted in case the SONA runs overtime.

ABS-CBN will use three different broadcast teams for their coverage. Channel 2 will be led by Ted Failon and Lynda Jumilla, ANC will be led by Tony Velasquez and Karmina Constantino, and DZMM TeleRadyo and Radyo Patrol 630 will be led by Anthony Taberna and Gerry Baja.

A live and uninterrupted feed of the coverage will also be streamed on abs-cbnnews.com. It is unknown if the SONA coverage will also be seen on ABS-CBN Sports+Action, since the NCAA will no longer be in conflict with the SONA.

TV5

The SONA coverage on TV5 will proceed after the Marvel animation block. ‘Hi-5 Philippines’ will be the only show preempted, as ‘Movie Max 5’ only airs as a filler program.

TV5 will utilize a parallel broadcast approach for the coverage. Erwin Tulfo and Cheryl Cosim will anchor TV5’s coverage of the SONA on four different platforms: TV5, AksyonTV, Radyo5 92.3 News FM, and News5Everywhere.

GMA

The SONA coverage on GMA will proceed after ‘The Half-Sisters’. ‘Buena Familia”s premiere will be moved tomorrow, while ‘Healing Hearts’, ‘Alisto’ and possibly ‘Birth of a Beauty’ will be preempted.

The press release of the network only indicated that Mel Tiangco and Mike Enriquez will anchor Channel 7’s coverage. Whether or not it will be a parallel coverage or a separate coverage on Channel 7, GMA News TV, GMA News Online and Super Radyo DZBB 594 remains to be seen.

All AM stations, save for specialty ones, will also pool their resources for the SONA coverage. Updates on the event will also be provided by a few FM stations.

Net 25 will also cover the SONA, but since it takes place on the same day as the Iglesia ni Cristo’s 101st founding anniversary, the primary focus of the station could be on the latter. UNTV will also handle their own coverage of the event.

Finally, the neophyte CNN Philippines (formerly Solar News Channel and 9TV) will join in on the SONA fun for the first time. Their coverage of the SONA will be anchored by Jing Magsaysay and Pia Hontiveros.

Regardless of the station, the entire nation will pay attention to the statements made by President Aquino. His last SONA will be very important, so keep an eye on what he says.

FTT Year 2014 in Review: Other Networks

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2015, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article will focus on the minor TV networks in the Philippines.

Highlights

A transitional period from the Solar News Channel to CNN Philippines got underway in August. Temporarily known as 9TV, the network was launched on August 23 after Antonio Cabangon-Chua purchased the network from Solar Entertainment’s Wilson Tieng; CNN later signed an agreement with Nine Media Corporation to rename the station as CNN Philippines early next year.

Net 25 also unveiled a new look, featuring a logo inspired from an eagle’s wing (in reference to its parent Eagle Broadcasting Corporation). The station then joined forces with sister station INC-TV 49 to cover the events surrounding the centennial of the Iglesia ni Cristo, including the Grand Evangelical Mission at the Philippine Arena that opened the centennial celebrations.

And finally, UNTV broke ground on the new broadcast center that will open in two years. The groundbreaking ceremony kicked off the station’s 10th anniversary (13th if the rock music format of UNTV were to be included in its history).

Lowlights

In June, IBC-13 and Asian Television Content Corporation joined forces to launch the ATC @ IBC block, featuring a lineup consisting of telenovelas, lifestyle and travel programs, and sports events. Low ratings and loss of revenue caused the block to be cancelled, though ATC later returned to broadcast the PBA Developmental League’s Aspirants Cup on IBC-13 in late October.

Solar Entertainment’s problems continued after the loss of 9TV to the ALC Group. Weeks after the sale of Solar News to Chua’s group was announced, Solar lost another partner in RMN and BEAM Inc. after the latter ceased its affiliation agreement, resulting in the loss of Jack City from free TV 31 in favor of religious programming and O Shopping block.

PTV-4 also made some drastic steps to improve their programming. While ‘Oh Ja Ryong is Coming’ was launched as planned, ‘K-Pop Idol Search – Pinoy Edition’, a partnership between PTV and HBKOR Inc., remains in limbo, as its launch date remains uncertain.

Outlook

The transition to digital television in a few years represents numerous challenges for the minor networks, some of which involve budgetary concerns. Still this is an obstacle that can be overcome, especially now that Philippine television is headed into a new era.

Both the ATC-IBC and PTV-HBKOR deals are at a crossroads, while Nine Media’s new venture as CNN Philippines is about to get underway. This and more as 2015 begins in earnest.

Broadcasting Notes on the Canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII will be canonized this Sunday at the Vatican.

The canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II will be a worldwide affair, one that involves over 200 countries broadcasting the event live and via satellite. And in the Philippines, the coverage of the event will be among the most extensive to date.

The canonization, slated to air this Sunday afternoon Manila time, will be aired in most stations of the country.

ABS-CBN

The Kapamilya network’s coverage on Channel 2 will be aired as part of both ‘Buzz ng Bayan’ and ‘TV Patrol Weekend’. Simultaneously, both DZMM TeleRadyo and the ABS-CBN News Channel will air a more comprehensive coverage of the canonization.

TV5

The Kapatid network’s coverage will be shown simultaneously on both Channel 5 and AksyonTV 41. Fortunately, no PBA games were scheduled on this day, as the Commissioner’s Cup semifinals was slated to begin the following day, giving News5 the opportunity to broadcast the event.

GMA

Instead of broadcasting the canonization on the main Channel 7, GMA decided to broadcast the event via its other VHF station GMA News TV 11. As a result, this Sunday’s edition of ‘Startalk’ will be aired without any opposition, as its rival program ‘Buzz ng Bayan’ will give way to the coverage of the canonization.

Other Stations

The government-owned People’s Television Channel 4 and IBC-13 will have a shared coverage of the canonization, while a separate broadcast will be aired for viewers of the Solar News Channel 9. However, there will be no live coverage on the Iglesia ni Cristo-owned Net 25 and the Members Church of God International-owned UNTV 37, for obvious reasons.

With that, From the Tube will like to congratulate both Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II on entering sainthood. God bless.

Revisiting the INC-ADD Rivalry

In the history of religious television, no one had a greater impact than the rivalry between two of the most famous religious organizations in the Philippines: the Iglesia ni Cristo and Members Church of God International. The rivalry became a hot topic among church members, other religious groups, and even a small portion of the media for much of the 2000s.

Beginning with the entry of MCGI’s flagship program ‘Ang Dating Daan‘ in 1980, the group led by executive minister Eliseo Soriano became critical of INC’s beliefs, so much so that in June 2001, INC responded with ‘Ang Tamang Daan‘. From then on, the two churches waged a war of words, with topics related to the Bible and church rituals. The war became so intense that even converts from the two churches joined in the discussion.

Ironically, ‘Ang Tamang Daan’ started its broadcasts on SBN 21, which was also the home network of ‘Ang Dating Daan’ at the time. After the debut of ATD, ADD began to air live on a nightly basis, before both programs left SBN 21 for Net 25 and UNTV 37 respectively. The move of both programs changed the makeup of the two networks, with Net 25 now owned by members of the INC while UNTV was purchased by Soriano’s cousin Daniel Razon.

The rivalry between the two churches took its toll on Soriano, who encountered a variety of legal problems filed by the INC. After receiving numerous death threats from INC members, Soriano eventually left overseas, where he continues to preach his own beliefs today. At the same time, INC ministers ceased its on-air criticism of MCGI, and today ‘Ang Tamang Daan’ (and sister program ‘Ang Pagbubunyag’) is aired similarly to other INC programs.

The INC was not the only organization that criticized Soriano’s beliefs. Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy’s The Kingdom of Jesus Christ: The Name Above Every Name, and Pastor Arsenio Ferriol’s Pentecostal Ministry Church of Christ 4th Watch were also staunch critics of Soriano. Even the MTRCB took notice of ‘Ang Dating Daan’, particularly during Soriano’s profanity-laced tirades that earned the program numerous suspensions.

Today, ‘Ang Dating Daan’ and its counterpart ‘Itanong Mo Kay Soriano‘, are being aired under close scrutiny by UNTV management. Even as they focused on preaching their own beliefs, to this day MCGI’s reputation as a true church remains a question mark, thanks in part to the role that the Iglesia ni Cristo took in attempting to take down the Members Church of God International.