FTT’s Thoughts on Journalists Running for the Senate

The 2019 mid-term elections is still over a year away.

This early, prognosticators are starting to look at potential candidates who are poised to take over half of the Senate seats come July of next year. And not surprisingly, there are a few names from the broadcast industry that were mentioned as potential candidates for one of the twelve Senate seats available.

Take for instance Jiggy Manicad. The long-time GMA News reporter and anchor is being considered as a possible candidate for a Senate seat according to Senate President Koko Pimentel.

Freddie Aguilar, Jiggy Manicad among possible PDP-Laban Senate bets: Koko https://t.co/n6kvT6zzTj

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) April 19, 2018

Consequently, Jiggy announced his departure from GMA News within days of the report, saying that he wants to jump into the ‘next level’ of public service. But he was not the only news personality to be mentioned as a possible Senate candidate.

In a recent Pulse Asia survey, PTV-4 news anchor Erwin Tulfo was listed in the top 12 of potential top candidates for a seat in the Senate. So far, Erwin has yet to comment on the matter.

Tulfo ranked 9th in the polls, performing better than former senators Lito Lapid and Jinggoy Estrada. He also performed better than Dela Rosa. #PHNews https://t.co/NvOxp6k0nv

— Rappler (@rapplerdotcom) April 20, 2018

Journalists running for public office is nothing new in the Philippines. Perhaps one can look at the two most successful journalists-turned-politicians of the recent past.

Noli de Castro, the ‘Kabayan’ of primetime television news, ran as Senator and won in 2001. Three years later, he became then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s running-mate for Vice President and became victorious, serving for another six years before resuming his career as a news anchor.

Another ABS-CBN News alumnus, Loren Legarda, also ran for a Senate seat in 1998 and won. She has since earned another two terms at the Senate in 2007 and 2013.

But not all journalists were destined for political office. Jay Sonza, for instance, twice tried to run for Senator but failed to earn a seat each time.

That said, any journalist who enters the world of politics, particularly in a highly-scrutinized position such as the Senate, must be well-rehearsed to handle the demands of the campaign and their role if elected. If they do not have what it takes, chances are they will not get the majority votes from the masses.

The election period is still over a year away, so there is a lot of time for the likes of Jiggy Manicad and Erwin Tulfo to consider the risks and rewards of the political arena. Good luck, not just with them, but also to any journalist who want to join the bandwagon.

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GMA Reformats Afternoon Prime with the Addition of Public Affairs Programs

Starting with ‘Alisto’ last May 26, GMA’s Public Affairs programs began to air on the teleserye-dominated ‘Afternoon Prime’ block.

Nearly two years ago, ABS-CBN decided to place their news and current affairs programs (a.k.a. ‘Pinoy True Stories’) in the afternoon slot. Soon after, they placed ‘Banana Nite’ in an earlier timeslot following their late-night telecast ‘Bandila’. At the time, I derided their decision to place ‘Banana Nite’ following their news program, simply because ABS-CBN’s late night public affairs programs do not measure up to the standards set by GMA’s award-winning counterparts.

As time wore on, however, the Kapamilya network’s decision appears to have paid off. ‘Pinoy True Stories’, which today consists of ‘Bistado’, ‘Mutya ng Masa’, ‘My Puhunan’, ‘Tapatan ni Tunying’ and ‘Red Alert’, enjoyed ratings of 10% or better, mainly due to higher viewership in the afternoon compared to the late night hours. In addition, the equally high ratings of ABS-CBN’s teleseryes are also helping the program’s cause.

The success of ‘Pinoy True Stories’ prompted GMA to make their own changes in the ‘Afternoon Prime’ block, something I first envisioned in an article back in December. The end result is a reformatted ‘Afternoon Prime’ that now includes five public affairs programs: ‘Alisto!’, ‘Tunay na Buhay’, ‘Power House’, ‘Reporter’s Notebook’, and ‘Love Hotline’. The newly-reassigned programs started airing last May 26, beginning with ‘Alisto!’.

On Mondays, ‘Alisto!’, hosted by Arnold Clavio, tackles various crimes, natural disasters, man-made accidents, and other life-threatening incidents. On Tuesdays, ‘Tunay na Buhay’, hosted by Rhea Santos, features famous individuals and their real life stories. Then on Wednesdays, ‘Power House’, hosted by Kara David, documents the lives of powerful people by showcasing their properties and their prized possessions while talking about their normal lives.

On Thursdays, ‘Reporter’s Notebook’, hosted by Jiggy Manicad and Maki Pulido, investigates a wide variety of stories that affect the Filipino society. And on Fridays, ‘Love Hotline’, hosted by Jean Garcia, spotlights individuals in the need of love advice.

GMA’s afternoon public affairs programs should give viewers a welcome break from the tear-jerking drama series of years past. But more importantly, it should help these programs gain some much-needed exposure from a bigger audience, considering the likes of ‘Reporter’s Notebook’ were regular winners in various international award-giving bodies.

It remains to be seen whether or not these programs will help GMA return to form in the afternoons. But for now, this is a good decision for GMA to bring them out of late nights and into the viewer-rich afternoon slot.

Love Anover’s Yolanda Story on Magpakailanman

While ABS-CBN News reporter Atom Araullo‘s brave journey at the height of Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) became a hot topic in the media, other news reporters endured similar paths while in the line of duty. And in tomorrow’s episode of ‘Magpakailanman‘ one such reporter shares her own story of survival.

In the upcoming episode ‘Sa Mata ng Daluyong’, GMA News reporter Love Anover will share her story on overcoming the strong winds and heavy rains of a typhoon, with Sunshine Dizon playing Anover. The episode airs after the sitcom ‘Vampire Ang Daddy Ko’.

Anover’s story was barely noticed in social media, as netizens focused on Araullo’s daring stand and Mike Enriquez’s snub of Jiggy Manicad’s report at the end of ‘24 Oras‘. Nevertheless, the upcoming episode of ‘Magpakailanman’ should inform the viewers on the risks of news reporting during natural disasters, in the process helping aspiring reporters prepare when thrust in a disastrous situation.

As a precursor of tomorrow’s episode, here was Anover and fellow reporter Jiggy Manicad narrating their harrowing experiences during the November 8 newscast of GMA News TV’s ‘State of the Nation’. The video can be seen below.

TV Coverage of Typhoon Yolanda

 

One of the many houses damaged during the landfall of Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) in the Visayas region. Haiyan is perhaps the strongest recorded typhoon in history, with a 315 kph wind.

Last night the Philippines experienced the wrath of Typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda). The 315 kph typhoon struck much of Visayas, and even brought strong winds in Southern and Central Luzon, Metro Manila, and Northern Mindanao, leaving nearly 60 casualties and counting. And every news outlet were there to cover the storm.

The ABS-CBN News Channel, DZMM TeleRadyo, GMA News TV, AksyonTV and Solar News Channel extensively covered the news of the typhoon last Friday. However, during the afternoon press conference at the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, only the ANC, DZMM TeleRadyo, SNC and GNTV were willing to air the live proceedings, while AksyonTV continued with the Radyo5 hookup of ‘Wanted sa Radyo’ and ‘Cristy FerMinute’. While AksyonTV did give way to breaking news on the NDRRMC press conference, their reluctance to air the press conference rather than continuing with their radio hookup still befuddles viewers.

ABS-CBN, TV5 and GMA also provided up-to-date reports on the storm during their newscasts. That said, it was a busy day for the writers, producers, anchors, reporters and cameramen who were present in covering the latest reports on Typhoon Yolanda. However, two lasting images involving news reporters stand out.

The first image came during ABS-CBN reporter Atom Araullo‘s report in Tacloban, where he braved the strong winds and heavy rains in order to provide the latest updates on the storm. Araullo first reported on the situation during ‘Umagang Kay Ganda’, but it was during ‘TV Patrol’ where his gutsy reporting became the talk of social media. Even CNN and various others news outlets around the world reported on Araullo’s bravery.

On the other hand, netizens criticize GMA‘s 24 Oras for cutting its program short during Jiggy Manicad’s report. Perhaps the network couldn’t wait to start their GMA Telebabad block, hence the decision not to go ahead with Jiggy’s report. Eventually Jiggy reported on the situation during News TV’s ‘State of the Nation’ and on GMA’s ‘Saksi’, where he and fellow reporter Love Anover reported on the casualty count and the damage Tacloban endured during Yolanda’s landfall. While his report was already belated, netizens were still keen to praise his bravery and calmness.

Typhoon Yolanda is scheduled to depart the Philippine Area of Responsibility later today. In the meantime, news outlets around the country and internationally will continue to give reports regarding the path of the storm.

What’s Wrong with GMA Telebabad?

Last night, ‘Genesis’ officially aired its debut episode. However, the entry of the new teleserye came at a not-so opportune time. ‘Genesis’ was supposed to replace ‘My Husband’s Lover’ this week, but ‘MHL”s finale was moved to October 18, for unknown reasons. With the entry of ‘Genesis’, GMA Telebabad now airs six teleseryes for this week, which does not bode well with viewers.

ABS-CBN, for its part, ends its teleserye block at around 10:30-10:40 p.m., after which the late night newscast ‘Bandila‘ goes on air. At around this time, ‘My Husband’s Lover’ is still airing, and with either ‘The Innocent Man‘ or ‘Bubble Gang’ still on the schedule, most viewers hungry for the news have no choice but to switch to ‘Bandila’. By the time ‘Saksi‘ airs, ABS-CBN’s newscast is finished, putting GMA‘s late night newscast at a disadvantage.

One particular reason behind GMA’s later airing of its teleseryes is the long broadcast hours allotted to ‘24 Oras‘. The said newscast begins around the same time as ‘TV Patrol‘. However, ’24 Oras’ usually ends at around 8:00-8:10 p.m., while ‘TV Patrol’ wraps up at around 7:30-7:40 p.m. The longer broadcast of ’24 Oras’ may be attributed to the more deliberate news delivery of anchors Mike Enriquez and Mel Tiangco, and coupled with the greater amount of commercials and stories, ’24 Oras” running time seems longer for a regular newscast. In contrast, ‘TV Patrol’ delivers at a much quicker pace, aided by its three-anchor team of Noli de Castro, Korina Sanchez and Ted Failon.

My suggestion for ’24 Oras’ is to add a third anchor; names such as Ivan Mayrina, Rhea Santos or Jiggy Manicad are worth considering. They also need to air less commercials, report news stories at a fast pace, and deemphasize on soft news stories. That way, GMA’s teleseryes can compete fairly against ABS-CBN’s, and more importantly, shorten the newscast to an hour to better compete with ABS-CBN’s.

GMA executives messed things up by rushing ‘Genesis’ into the airwaves instead of waiting for ‘My Husband’s Lover’ to end. Thus with the six teleseryes and ’24 Oras’ for this week, GMA will definitely have a hard time competing against its Kapamilya counterparts. If they can improve GMA Telebabad to compete fairly against ABS-CBN’s ‘Primetime Bida’ by using these suggestions, that would be better, but only if they agree on this.