GMA News TV: Variety is the spice of life

For as long as we could remember, we have always looked upon QTV-11 as GMA’s Lifestyle station which we had thought would last forever as home of Christine Jacob and Suzi Entrata’s Full Time Moms. They loved the show, and their audience and advertisers loved them back.

We nurtured these thoughts as QTV was re-launched into a reformatted GMA News TV during a grand celebration on Feb. 7 of last year. Survivors from QTV were Full Time Moms and Tweetbiz.

But even Full Time Moms and Tweetbiz had to go as GMA News concentrated on news, documentaries, public affairs and entertainment news.

When Full Time Moms started airing Oct. 12, 2009 with Bibeth Orteza directing, we recalled how excited Christine and Suzi were at the time! We recently asked Christine what she missed most about the show. She responded, “I miss learning from my guests who always had something interesting to share.” Perhaps on GMA News TV, she could still host something on parenting which she’s raring to do, in the manner that Vicky Morales does in Wish Ko Lang.

The irrepressible Winnie Monsod

Late last year, GMA News TV International was officially launched on UBI World TV and in May this year, Canada joined the family.

“We are responding to viewers’ requests for timely news updates in Filipino,” stated News TV head Nessa Valdellon.

Bannered by such big names in broadcast journalism as Jessica Soho, Mike Enriquez, Mel Tiangco, Arnold Clavio, Howie Severino and Vicky, GMA News TV prides itself in “serbisyong totoo” with newscasts and public affairs programs, all in Filipino, from morning to night. Significant additions to the team have been Kara David, Winnie Monsod and Malou Mangahas. Advisers for investigative documentaries are Sheila Coronel, Marites Vitug and Ed Lingao.

We started tuning in on News TV when we caught Vicky and our favorite Wish Ko Lang while surfing the Net. When a 12-year-old from Davao, Mariannet Amper, committed suicide out of poverty, Vicky flew to Davao with Mariannet’s wishes for 12 goats, a bicycle for a brother, an STI College scholarship for the other siblings and livelihood items for her mom and dad.

While most episodes were based on letters sent in with wishes, there is also the search for Good Samaritans that the show undertakes on its own. Alfred Vargas playing a taong grasa in Quiapo asking for food is a favorite episode we have seen replayed, perhaps because it was tremendously successful in finding Good Samaritan Ronald Reveza who bought him coffee. A dirtied Elizabeth Oropesa portraying an inmate about to be jailed for life wasn’t as successful. Neither was Diana Zubiri in Hong Kong in search for her Good Samaritan.

Former beauty queen-actress Aurora Sevilla who wrote for help was cast in Maxene Magalona’s sinenovela’s Agawin Mo Man Lahat sa Akin with Maxene herself giving her the good news.

A new show is Personalan, which solves problems between warring parties. It’s a little like TV5’s Face to Face  minus the hair-pulling incidents and the bleeped dirty words, but the purpose of getting the fighting parties to forgive and forget each other is the same.

Jean Garcia (left) and Jolina Magdangal host Personalan

Of course, the news is the station’s biggest drawer and its reason for being. Here, our favorite is Mareng Winnie Monsod, broadcaster, economist, professor, writer and co-host on GMA’s Debate with Mare and Pare with Oscar Orbos, and Bawal Ang Pasaway kay Mareng Winnie.

In October 2010, a video of Winnie’s last lecture in Economics 100.1 (Introduction to Macroeconomics) became a viral hit online where she remarked, “You’re going to be as good and as honorable as you should be. You are going to stay in the Philippines. And if you leave the Philippines, you are at least going to try to pay back. And if you don’t do any of the above, this is my last threat to you. Mrs. Monsod is going to haunt you! From the grave! I intend to go up there and from up there I’m going to look down on you and I am going to confront you at the worst possible moments in your life.”

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