ABS-CBN journos react over TeleRadyo's upcoming closure
ABS-CBN broadcast journalists took to social media to react over the news that TeleRadyo will cease operations on June 30 amid financial losses since 2020.
Karen Davila on Twitter said she spent 17 years in DZMM and TeleRadyo, from 2001 to 2018, and has been part of her 30-year broadcast journey.
"After June 30, Teleradyo will say goodbye but DZMM will return on AM radio reaching millions of Filipinos once more," Davila said. "As we face a changing media landscape, may we have the courage to continue what we are called to do."
Former ABS-CBN News head Ging Reyes on Twitter called the news "heartbreaking."
"I’m thinking of my #Teleradyo team today. You all did everything you could - to keep delivering news & information in the face of monumental challenges," Reyes said. "Don’t let anyone or anything crush your spirit.
In a lengthy Instagram post, Bernadette Sembrano recalled her anchor duties on TeleRadyo programs like Gising Pilipinas, Radyo Patrol Balita for noontime and 4 p.m., and Lingkod Kapamilya.
"All the memories come rushing back," Sembrano said, adding that though it's "still sketchy who stays," she's confident the new owners will want the No. 1 people to continue to be No. 1, citing colleague Franco Reyes.
She also recalled her days at Probe, saying her former colleagues are now working for different stations and digital platforms bringing their Kapamilya training.
"Iba ang DZMM. Iba ang mga kapamilya sa DZMM. Iba ang Tatak Kapamilya!!!" Sembrano also said. "We will be more than fine! Exciting times ahead!"
Tina Marasigan, meanwhile, on Twitter shared photos with colleagues and mourned the upcoming closure, especially that they're still on the job for the past few years even if ABS-CBN doesn't have a congressional franchise.
Nagsama-sama kami kagabi para hindi masyado masakit. But this cut is the deepest. #TeleRadyo stayed on air. We, I never left. But yesterday’s news have called the endgame. We only have a number of days to be in our home, with this team, with this family. Ito na yun. Last 36 days pic.twitter.com/xZjviqiaNN
— Tina Marasigan (@tina_marasigan) May 24, 2023
"Nagsama-sama kami kagabi para hindi masyado masakit. But this cut is the deepest," Marasigan said. "We only have a number of days to be in our home, with this team, with this family. Ito na yun. Last 36 days."
Marc Logan on Instagram shared a photo of him and his TeleRadyo colleagues on his shows Sakto and Logan's Live!.
Gretchen Fullido quote tweeted a throwback photo of her with Noli de Castro and Ted Failon during TeleRadyo's 30th anniversary.
Anjo Bagaoisan on Twitter shared his three-minute report and wrote the hashtag TeleRadyo as well as red, green, and blue hearts, Kapamilya's brand colors.
Jeff Canoy simply shared a photo of ABS-CBN's communications tower hours after the news broke.
For her part, Jacque Manabat on Twitter shared the statement of the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines urging the ABS-CBN management to ensure that the TeleRadyo workers who will be laid off are given benefits, as well as assistance in looking for another work within or outside the network.
"We stand with you, TeleRadyo," Manabat said.
To cushion the blow, ABS-CBN is entering into a joint venture with Prime Media Holdings Inc. to produce various programs.
The programs will be supplied to broadcasters and other third-party platforms, like the Philippine Collective Media Corporation owned by House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Under the agreement, ABS-CBN will have a minority stake in the joint venture, and Prime Media Inc. will be the majority stakeholder.
TeleRadyo was a pay television channel on cable providers, which was simulcast on ABS-CBN's flagship AM radio station DZMM 630. It started streaming on YouTube in 2021, as ABS-CBN went off the air in May 2020 after Congress junked its petition to renew its franchise.
Since then, ABS-CBN has not only utilized online platforms to stream its content but also partnered with television networks like TV5 and GMA to create content.