Ted Failon, DJ ChaCha move to TV5 radio

TWO months ago, TV5 announced new entertainment shows to bolster its programming with original content. This month, the local television network is introducing a new news program featuring seasoned journalists and a hybrid music and news program on its FM radio station hosted by former ABS-CBN anchor Ted Failon and radio host DJ ChaCha.

The new news show, Frontline Pilipinas, promises “to uphold the highest standards of delivering timely and relevant news while providing context to the most important issues that impact the lives of Filipinos today,” said a press release.

The show is also said to “dissect breaking headlines in ways that the public can easily digest and better appreciate,” as anchors will also provide analysis “to make the information more inclusive and understandable to the viewers.”

“News and information, that’s our battle cry. We should only report essential information. Our second battle cry is a voice that is informed and concerned [that’s why] we wanted to share the opinion of the experts and the sentiments of ordinary citizens,” Luchi Cruz-Valdez, first vice-president for news and information at TV5, said during a digital press conference on Sept. 30.

Frontline Pilipinas will be hosted by Raffy Tulfo and Cheryl Cosim who will be manning the anchor desk. Mr. Tulfo made a name for himself for decades worth of shows meant to help people with their problems and legal woes, while Ms. Cosim also has years under her belt as a reporter and anchor for several news programs.

Ms. Cruz-Valdez, meanwhile, will be hosting a segment on the show where she interviews key people behind the day’s deadlines, while seasoned journalist Ed Lingao will be taking news items and explaining their context on his segment, News ExplainED.

And for a bit of lighthearted but informative fun, Lourd de Veyra, known for his tongue-in-cheek humor and pop culture references, will be hosting Word of the Lourd, a segment focused on commentaries on today’s headlines.

“The five of us are in a show together and we made sure that it’s a stronger newscast this time… and just like our program statement, what we want is to deliver to our viewers information that they need to know,” Ms. Cosim said in the vernacular in the conference.

Frontline Pilipinas is now the network’s flagship news program on primetime replacing Aksyon Prime which ran from 2010 to 2020 before it was replaced with a simulcast of One Balita Pilipinas in March. One Balita Pilipinas is the news program of pay-TV network, Cignal TV.

Frontline Pilipinas airs Mondays to Fridays at 6:30 p.m. on TV5, and at 8 p.m. on the same days on ONE Ph Channel 1 on Cignal TV.

Ted Failon and DJ Chacha, known for their tandem work on ABS-CBN’s DZMM radio station, veteran TV and radio anchor Ted Failon and popular radio show host DJ Chacha (real name: Czarina Mae Balba) are moving over to TV5’s Radyo 5 with a four-hour show featuring news, music, and pop culture.

“We are excited to deliver a paradigm shift on FM Radio and we are thankful that Radyo5 gave us the opportunity to serve the people with this one-of-a-kind format,” Mr. Failon said during a press conference on Oct. 1.

As Mr. Failon explained, he will be in charge of listeners and viewers who are “seniors” in taking stock of today’s news on Ted Failon and DJ Chacha @Radyo 5, while Ms. Balba will be in charge of millennials.

The four-hour show, which starts at 6 a.m. and airs every day on Radyo 5 (FM 92.3), was described as a “holistic radio program” with segments dedicated to issues and breaking news, entertainment vignettes, feel-good stories, social media trends, and anecdotes.

Mr. Failon also noted that there will be a segment dedicated to music from various generations to highlight what songs his generation listens to, while Balba will be in charge of music of today.

Mr. Failon and Ms. Balba used to have a show on DZMM (AM 630) called Failon Ngayon (Mr. Failon started the show in 1996, while Ms. Balba was introduced as co-host in 2013) but the show fell victim to the fallout from Congress’ refusal to renew ABS-CBN’s franchise — many shows were cut in the aftermath. And thus Mr. Failon bid goodbye to his network of several decades and decided to move to TV5, bringing his partner Ms. Balba and several of the show’s staff with him.

“I was initially offered to host on TV, but I asked to stay on radio,” Mr. Failon said, adding that he wanted to spend more time with his family and thus wanted to lighten his load.

He asked Ms. Balba if she wanted to go over to Radyo 5 and do a show with him again, and she agreed.

Ted Failon and DJ Chacha @Radyo5 airs on 92.3News FM from 6-10 a.m. The show will also have a two-hour simulcast starting 6 a.m. on TV5 and One PH Channel 01 on Cignal TV. — Zsarlene B. Chua

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