War in the Living Room: Are you kapuso or kapamilya?

This story was taken from www.inq7.net

War in the Living Room By Carmela Fonbuena Newsbreak Staff Writer ARE YOU kapuso or kapamilya? In these days, you can’t afford to be both. Caught in the fierce battle between the two giant TV networks are the viewers who have decided to take sides. And how! Things were less complicated then. Fans were loyal to the celebrities, not to the stations that hosted them. In the heyday of the film industry, for example, movie fans followed Nora or Vilma wherever the two went or whichever TV channel they appeared in. Today, the mass branding of GMA-7 (Kapuso) and ABS-CBN (Kapamilya) is somehow pitting audiences against each other. Even the rumored transfer of an ABS-CBN star to the rival GMA-7 network lands on the headlines of the Lifestyle pages and merits loud denials on prime time by the concerned TV station. And when former “kapuso” (GMA-7) teen celebrity Toni Gonzaga jumped to “kapamilya” ABS-CBN, she found herself profusely apologizing to her “kapuso” fans in—of all forums—ABS-CBN’s “The Buzz” talk show. Gonzaga had been a mainstay in GMA-7 regular programs such as its noontime show, “Eat Bulaga.” One’s choice station has already caused heavy traffic on the Internet. Is GMA-7 the number one TV station nowadays? Bloggers are deeply divided. Read what one kapamilya has to say about the issue in www.pinoyexchange.com: “GMA-7 has no right whatsoever to say that they are the no.1 network since the surveys issued by you-know-what are UNRELIABLE and BIASED. Why do I say so? It’s because the surveys are only conducted in Metro Manila.” This prompted a terse reply from a kapuso: “Basta KAPUSO is NO.1 sa masa SIGURO pang mayaman lang ang KAPAMILYA (SIGURO LANG).” Discussions range from putdowns of the rival programs to the loyalties of the stations’ contract celebrities. What’s all this branding about, anyway? GMA-7 President Manuel Quioge told NEWSBREAK that “kapuso” was introduced in 2002 to build viewer loyalty to their station. At that time, they were gearing to compete head-on against the ratings leader ABS-CBN, which introduced “Kapamilya” in the same year. Quioge explained: “To achieve this, we had to build an emotional relationship with the viewers. Our shows may be good, but if we don’t have their loyalty, they can always jump to the other station after that show.” Entertainment shows began using the slogan, and because it clicked, this soon rubbed off on the news programs. GMA-7’s news anchors and reporters started using the slogan daily in their news reports. In the case of GMA-7 news anchor Mike Enriquez, he even drags the kapuso slogan into his product endorsements of, say, Astring-O-Sol mouthwash. ABS-CBN, however, chose to tweak its brand slogan for its news programs. While kapamilya refers to the whole station, news anchors and reporters have adopted a more “global” slogan in the news: “Patrol ng Pilipino” as against GMA-7’s “Ang inyong Kapuso.” This was followed by a noticeable change in the way reporters act in the field while breaking the news. A “kapuso” reporter would be seen hugging a typhoon victim, while a “kapamilya” reporter would be shown on TV distributing relief goods in poor communities. There’s basically nothing wrong with a reporter showing empathy, according to journalism ethics professor Luis V. Teodoro of the University of the Philippines. “Even in print reporting, you have to adopt a certain persona in interviewing somebody to be able to get the information.” However, it’s one thing to be sympathetic, it’s another to make a big deal out of it. “Putting reporters in the report is self-serving. It makes the reporters the focus of the event,” Teodoro said. Last year’s media coverage of the Quezon typhoon disaster, for instance, sparked debates among practitioners because reporters were shown giving away relief goods to families. “We saw that the people were suffering. That is why we wanted to help as individuals,” ABS-CBN reporter Jay Ruiz said. “The Quezon coverage was a special case,” he explained, in response to criticism that they went overboard. Luis Alejandro, CEO of ABS-CBN, said: “It was being humane about it. That was not staged.” Both ABS-CBN and GMA-7 ran a telethon on the Quezon typhoon disaster. This helped the two companies raise funds for their respective foundations. “Beyond funding, our responsibility is to make sure that through media we continue to remind people about this program so that we can continue to have sponsors for them. Total money is close to P100 million. One sheik gave $50,000. That to me is the ultimate test of how viewers look at ABS-CBN outside of the ratings. Would you give your money to somebody you don’t trust? GMA-7 did not get that,” Alejandro said. News organizations are certainly not banned from getting involved in civic projects. “But if it is done on air, then this leads us to the question of what the motives are. That will lead you inevitably to [the companies’] commercial interest. In the context of the ratings war, you know that it’s all about business,” Teodoro said. In the end, there seems to be no debate on the issue of helping out during disasters. But to Teodoro, the best assistance that any news organization can provide the public still comes in the form of stories—stories “that inform people about the causes of disaster and what can be done to prevent future recurrences.” Send feedback to letters@newsbreak.com.ph (INQ7.net editor’s note: GMA Network is a parent company of INQ7.net.)

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