In 100 Words: Trip ni Kris on GMA

The long-awaited and long-overdue return of Kris Aquino is finally here.

On Sunday, The Queen of All Media will host the one-off special ‘Trip ni Kris’, which will air on GMA’s SNBO block. The two-hour special will focus on Kris’ recent trip to Nueva Ecija, and will also look at the various delicacies and places of interest in this area.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BShm0CkgoUn/

‘Trip ni Kris’ comes over a year after her stunning decision to end the long-running ABS-CBN talk show ‘Kris TV’. Since then, she has guested on the defunct GMA talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’ and presided over a no-showed appearance of President Rodrigo Duterte in a GoNegosyo event.

Kris also considered ABS-CBN as another viable option for the special, but the network already has prior commitments to the Sunday’s Best block.

Advertisement

FTT Year 2016 in Review: The 20 Stories That Define the Year in Media (Part II)

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2017, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at the 20 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.

The End of Kris TV

‘Kris TV’ had been an early morning staple for nearly five years. With Kris Aquino at the helm, ‘Kris TV’ became one of the most enduring talk shows of the decade, and despite all the criticisms and low ratings thrown at them, ABS-CBN kept the faith on both Kris and the show itself.

But on March 23, Kris Aquino made a stunning announcement that she will officially bid farewell due to her recent health issues. As it turned out, this was ‘Kris TV”s last original episode, with the show continuing to air reruns until April 15, before it was replaced by ‘Magandang Buhay’.

Since then, Kris appeared as a guest on rival GMA talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’, and was scheduled to interview President Rodrigo Duterte in November until the latter no-showed due to illness.

News5 Loses Men to Duterte

Speaking of President Duterte, his cabinet featured a select number of former News5 anchors and reporters. This included PCOO chief Martin Andanar, DOT spokesperson Cherie Mercado, and assistant secretary for media relations Mia Reyes.

With the departure of numerous on-air staff, News5 was forced to implement new measures such as solo anchors on select ‘Aksyon’ newscasts. Unfortunately, it did not mitigate the damage that News5 endured this year, so much so that its head Luchi Cruz-Valdes even contemplated on relinquishing her post in favor of a cabinet position, a rumor that was eventually quashed.

However, this was not the only problem that TV5 faced this year.

Dissolution of TV5’s Entertainment Department

Late last year, TV5 reached out to VIVA Entertainment head Vic del Rosario to reinvigorate its entertainment division. The end result of this collaboration included shows such as ‘Ang Panday’, ‘Bakit Manipis ang Ulap’, ‘Born to Be a Star’ and ‘Tasya Fantasya’.

Unfortunately, none of VIVA’s shows clicked, with questionable scheduling and low ratings to blame for the issues. As a result, new TV5 head Chot Reyes had no choice but to start over, dissolving TV5’s entertainment division, and cutting ties with VIVA in September.

For now, TV5 airs TV shopping blocks, Tagalized canned programs and movies, News5 shows and the PBA, while waiting for Chot Reyes to renovate the station from within.

The Rebirth of CNN Philippines

Last year, CNN Philippines was heavily criticized for its revolving door of anchors, a penchant for airing HLN and CNN International shows, and a lack of commitment towards breaking news. Enter Armie Jarin-Bennett, a CNN International veteran who decided to give CNN Philippines an extreme makeover.

Within a year since her entry, CNN Philippines transformed itself into a force in the world of journalism almost overnight. New locally flavored shows were introduced, and newly-hired hosts and anchors such as Pinky Webb, Ruth Cabal, Andrei Felix and Anthony Pangilinan were brought in.

The end result is a positively-reviewed news organization which now strives to tell the story of the Filipino, as evidenced by the network’s highly-praised coverage of the vice presidential debates.

PTV-4’s Revitalization and IBC-13’s Sale, as Promised by President Duterte

Upon assuming office on June 30, President Rodrigo Duterte promised sweeping changes for the country. None was more evident than in the two networks that are owned by the government: PTV-4 and IBC-13.

President Duterte’s plan for PTV-4 is to become a public service network in the mold of the PBS in the U.S. and the BBC in the U.K. As for IBC-13, his objective is to sell the network to private investors for P10 billion, with the eye towards revitalizing its seemingly moribund programming.

While the proposals will take some time, one can only hope that the two networks will soon return to form as the country’s respective government and general entertainment station.

Part III of this four-part series is coming up this Thursday. Stay tuned.

Kris Aquino Leaves ABS-CBN, to Join APT Entertainment

The fate of Kris Aquino’s entertainment future has been confirmed.

‘The Queen of All Media’ announced on her Instagram yesterday that she is officially done as an ABS-CBN talent. In addition, Kris announced that she will work on a new project with ‘Eat Bulaga’ producer Tony Tuviera.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BKOOpHJghhX/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BKOO8JGAmHP/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BKOPi6yAGBZ/

In response, ABS-CBN issued this statement:

“We thank Kris for the many years that she has been a Kapamilya bringing joy, hope, and inspiration to our viewers worldwide. She will always be a Kapamilya and we wish her well in her new journey.”

Kris Aquino had been a part of ABS-CBN for 20 years, having hosted numerous talk shows (e.g. ‘The Buzz’, ‘Kris TV’) and game shows (e.g. ‘Game KNB’, ‘Kapamilya Deal or No Deal’), played the role of judge in ‘Pilipinas Got Talent’, and acted on several dramas (e.g. ‘Hiram’, ‘Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo’) and movies (e.g. ‘Sukob’, ‘Feng Shui’). Her long and distinguished service on the said network attracted not only fans, but also critics alike.

Kris’ most recent project with ABS-CBN, ‘Kris TV’, ended last April, as she struggled with health issues in the show’s final months. After that, Kris went on a well-deserved vacation, before returning home to decide her fate as a talent.

On July 1, Kris made an unexpected appearance on GMA’s now-defunct talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’. Despite the guesting, she remained mum over her next move.

Initially, Kris talked to ABS-CBN with regards to a possible new project. But in the end, she decided to hook up with Tony Tuviera for a different TV project, which could be her first outside ABS-CBN since GMA’s ‘Startalk’ 21 years ago.

It remains to be seen, however, if the said new project will indeed air on GMA (APT’s current shows ‘Calle Siete’, ‘Eat Bulaga’ and ‘Sunday PinaSaya’ all currently air on GMA). Regardless, let’s just hope that Kris can stay healthy while continuing to do what she loves best: entertaining the viewers.

Yan ang Morning Comes Up Short, Ends This Week

‘Yan ang Morning’ will air its finale this Friday. The show has endured low ratings since it premiered on May 2. (Logo courtesy of GMA Network)

Once again, GMA’s attempt at a long-term talk show slipped before their very eyes.

The latest victim is ‘Yan ang Morning!’, whose run will mercifully end this Friday, August 12. Though Marian Rivera has stated that her show is only good for one season, it was clear that ‘Yan ang Morning!”s low ratings and bad timeslot is the reason behind its eventual demise.

‘Yan ang Morning!’ first aired on May 2, 2016, and will have aired a total of 73 episodes by the end of this week. When it was first announced, many assumed that the talk show will be pitted against ‘Magandang Buhay’, another debuting talk show which replaced ‘Kris TV’ on ABS-CBN back on April 19.

But instead of following through that plan, GMA stayed true to old-fashioned talk show tradition by airing ‘Yan ang Morning!’ at 10:45 a.m. The plan backfired, and with ratings fluctuating within the 6% mark, GMA was forced to move the show to an earlier timeslot of 9:30 a.m., effective May 30.

Unfortunately for ‘Yan ang Morning!’, the change of timeslot did little to stem the tide. And to make matters worse, GMA management watched helplessly as its supposed rival ‘Magandang Buhay’ managed to earn better ratings, even though it was not enough to beat the entirety (or the majority) of the Astig Authority anime block.

Friday’s final episode of ‘Yan ang Morning!’ will be a very special occasion, as it coincides with Marian Rivera’s 32nd birthday. Her guests for the finale will be none other than her husband Dingdong Dantes and daughter Zia.

But as the talk show nears its conclusion, what will be the next plan for GMA as far as morning talk shows were concerned? Considering the lack of long-term success of such shows following the cancellation of ‘SIS’, GMA may no longer have the motivation to produce a morning talk show again, and thus, they could stick with their reservoir of Koreanovelas in the near future.

For now, though, ‘Yan ang Morning!’ must enjoy and cherish its final week on the air. It was not a bad show, but with its poor scheduling and short run, it was not a good show to enjoy either.

No Talk Show Rivalry for GMA, Again

‘Yan ang Morning’ will not go up against ‘Magandang Buhay’ after all.

GMA made that clear when it announced its new morning lineup last Monday. And with the premiere of ‘Yan ang Morning’ this Monday, this is how their current lineup looks like:

• 7:30 a.m. – Astig Authority block
  • ‘Shaman King’
  • ‘Yo-Kai Watch’
  • ‘Bleach’
  • ‘Dragon Ball Z’
  • ‘Knock Out’
• 10:00 a.m. – ‘Mako Mermaids’
• 10:45 a.m. – ‘Yan ang Morning’

That’s right, 10:45 a.m. For some reason, GMA decided not to have ‘Yan ang Morning’ face ‘Magandang Buhay’ head-to-head (the latter currently airs at 7:30 a.m.), and instead air the former in a timeslot that was traditionally occupied by previous long-running talk shows (e.g. ‘Today with Kris Aquino’, ‘SIS’).

There are some good and bad news on this decision. The good news is that despite some good reviews and strong showing in social media, ‘Magandang Buhay’ has not been able to make an impact in the ratings (much like ‘Kris TV’ before it), losing to the entire Astig Authority block by a wide margin.

As far as GMA is concerned, their anime block is doing just fine, even if they continue to air reruns of several beloved animes. For them, there is no point in sacrificing Astig Authority’s timeslot in favor of another program since the block continues to have a strong following.

The bad news? After Astig Authority, ratings for GMA in the morning slip predictably, as ‘Kapamilya Blockbusters’ kickstart a momentum swing for ABS-CBN that would continue for the rest of the day.

That said, GMA’s ratings woes after Astig Authority will put significant pressure on ‘Yan ang Morning’. Considering that their previous talk show ‘Basta Every Day Happy’ did not fare well, ‘Yan ang Morning’ could have a hard time making an impact in its current timeslot.

Would GMA be better off if ‘Yan ang Morning’ go one-on-one with ‘Magandang Buhay’? We’ll never know, but then again, anything can happen, and if ‘Yan ang Morning’ is able to thrive in its current timeslot, that could help GMA’s morale.

Hopefully they win, otherwise another failure of a talk show is in the offing.

Hosted by Marian Rivera, with Boobay as her sidekick, ‘Yan ang Morning’ airs weekdays starting May 2 at 10:45 a.m. on GMA.

In 100 Words: Magandang Buhay to Premiere This Monday

It’s going to be a ‘Magandang Buhay’ this coming Monday.

Yes, that’s the name of the new talk show that will be hosted by Karla Estrada, Melai Cantiveros and Jolina Magdangal. And as expected, it will replace ‘Kris TV’ on its old 7:30 a.m. timeslot.

The premiere of ‘Magandang Buhay’ had been long overdue, as ‘Kris TV’ continued to air reruns despite its final broadcast last March 23. Nevertheless, for ABS-CBN and the show’s producers, it was finally worth the wait.

Over the next two weeks, ‘Magandang Buhay’ will be pitted against GMA’s animes. But if GMA decides to pit their own new talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’ opposite ‘Magandang Buhay’, it could make things a little more interesting.