New daily morning radio duo to beat

Erwin Tulfo and Doris Bigornia, the feisty tandem formerly of DZMM’s Kontrapelo, are back, this time to the daily morning radio grind. The two make up the power duo on the airlanes on Birada, the flagship program of DZXL 558 khz, airing from 8:30 to 10 a.m.

Erwin and Doris were sidelined from TV news reporting for months, but they cannot be happier now in their new home. DZXL is the AM radio station of the 55-year-old Radio Mindanao Network (RMN), founded by visionary Henry Canoy and now being steered by his three sons — Eric (president), Butch (vice president for sales and marketing) and Charley (vice president for operations).

RMN was in the process of improving its AM radio programs to address the changing needs of the public. Erwin and Doris were asked to go on board and join the talent powerhouse that includes Jake Maderazo on Taumbayan Naman, Ira Panganiban on 30 Minutos, 30 Segundos, Ogie Diaz on Wow, Ang Showbiz and Melo del Prado on Kasado 558.

Erwin informs Birada is not the usual news exposé  which is the typical format of daily morning radio. The program, whose title was coined by Charley Canoy, tackles more of politics, government and the latest news.

Since they started going on air last July, Erwin and Doris have been patronized by listeners from all walks of life and all directions. With the program’s web streaming, they also get e-mails and text messages from as far as Japan, Korea, Illinois and Saudi Arabia.

Listeners from the C-D-E brackets vent their reaction to all sorts of topics, especially if it’s a hard-hitting issue. There are days when Birada gets over a thousand text messages in its one-hour-and-a-half airing, according to Erwin. When the decision on former President Joseph Estrada’s executive clemency was granted, Birada yielded more than 1,500 text messages in one morning, which no other program in that timeslot had received. Even in its daily commercial load, Birada gets strong support from advertisers.

“We are aware that we have the power to influence the masa,” says Doris, who earned the Mutya ng Masa tag. “The trust that listeners give us means a lot to us. We always give a balance report. Very informative. Yet, we know how to be responsible. We know if we are already bordering on libel. Hindi naman lahat banat na lang.”

DZXL’s new morning duo is up against veterans Ted Failon and Korina Sanchez on DZMM’s Tambalang Failon at Sanchez, as well as Arnold Clavio and Ali Sotto on DZBB’s Dobol A sa Dobol B.

“It’s a challenge to be up against Ted and Korina or Arnold and Ali,” Erwin asserts. “But we want to be different, so listeners will tune in to us. We say our real sentiments about the issues, without any limitations or restrictions. Our energy level from the first minute is consistent up to the last.”

The image they became known for helped in getting Erwin and Doris their new assignment. Their credibility and formidable broadcasting background precede them. “Listeners trust us because we have  established our credibility,” Erwin maintains. “They knew us even before. So even if we’re in a new network, it was just like re-connecting again with our listeners.”

Both are thankful that they can now have more freedom to discuss any issue on the airlanes. “We’re more free to talk about any topic,” Erwin offers. “(RMN) Management doesn’t restrict us because they have no other business interests to protect. On radio, you have to be true to yourself. Pula is pula, puti is puti. If you stay in the middle, listeners will react.”

Erwin was working for Angel Radyo when he was invited to join DZXL last July. At that time, his contract with DZAR was already about to end. On TV, he helps out his brother Ben on the weekly investigative show, Bitag, on IBC 13.

“When I got a call from Charley, he asked me to find a partner for a daily morning radio show on DZXL,” Erwin recalls. “I gave only one name. It wasn’t hard to convince Doris to work with me again.”

Doris admits she initially had second thoughts when Erwin called her up to join DZXL. “Radio was not my cup of tea,” she allows. “But when I learned they would make us go up against Ted and Korina, it became a big challenge for me. I guess the job came at the right time.”

After only four months of doing a daily morning radio show, Doris realizes how radio is such a powerful medium. “You get instant reaction from listeners, very much unlike TV where you have to wait for overnight ratings to gauge if your program is being watched,” she says. “You command power by being on radio. Generals, government officials and politicians talk to you.”

Doris admits she would be a hypocrite if she will say she doesn’t miss TV reporting. While covering the Mindanao insurgency, she risked her life in several instances just to get the reports and outscoop the competition. Yet, she didn’t complain.

“It was my life even before I had kids,” Doris says of her erstwhile job. “I eat and breathe the news. It was the job I’ve known since I was 18. I got used even to death threats. Today, I still think of every missed opportunity in delivering a particular report whenever I would read the newspapers.”

But Doris cannot be thankful enough for being heard every morning on DZXL. “This is my sweet revenge against people who want to see me fade into oblivion after I left ABS-CBN,” Doris grants. “This is my second chance and I’m really thankful to the Canoys for trusting me. We value the trust they gave us.”

Every night, Doris is seen as a newscaster on Balitaan, the nightly newscast of Central Luzon TV 36, airing all the way from Pampanga.