DISGUSTING!

THAT was the first word that came to mind as I watched a six-year-old boy nicknamed Jan-Jan sexually gyrating like a macho dancer in Willie Revillame’s show on TV5, much to the delight of the host and the audience.

I couldn’t even watch the entire video clip, which has been making the rounds of the social-networking sites via YouTube because it was just so sick and tasteless.

Most of my friends know I’m virtually unshockable, and hardly disturbed at the ordinarily offensive items; being a journalist often makes one jaded about these matters. But seeing Jan-Jan perform in such a manner in exchange for P10,000, to help his family, just crossed the line for me.

What was worse was after Jan-Jan completed the deed, Revillame, in his trademark maniacal evil laugh, egged the little boy to do it again. “Umiiyak pa ’yan!” he shouted into his mic, so entertained by the little boy’s conduct on the air.

Then His Majesty’s Crassness added, in all the wisdom he could muster: “Ganyan na ho ang hirap ng buhay ng tao...siyempre nagsasayaw siya bilang macho dancer sa edad n’yang ’yan para sa mahal niyang pamilya.” He was hysterically amused, and the audience, too, lapped it all up wildly clapping their hands and loudly cheering.

What a sick, sick world we live in.

But I can’t lay the entire blame on TV5 alone. In its quest for more advertisers and profit, it has tapped into the Filipino masses’ penchant for banal mediocre entertainment. It’s not alone. All the other TV networks do the same.

Aside from Willing Willie, you have Eat Bulaga and its vapid hosts and half-naked dancing girls on GMA. While I haven’t watched Happy Yipee Yehey—­ABS-CBN’s new noon-time variety show—I’ve read that it’s basically a reincarnation of Wowowee, the old show which was headlined by Revillame.


What has happened to network TV programming?

When I was a young kid growing up in the ’70s, our variety shows were smart, funny and really showcased the best in Filipino talent.

At noontime, I watched Student Canteen with hosts Eddie Ilarde, Pepe Pimentel, Helen Vela, Coney Reyes and Bobby Ledesma. I remember its hugely successful talent contest—“Search for the Student Canteener”—which attracted quite a number of amateur singers who could really wow the audience on sheer voice quality. (If I’m not mistaken, Marco Sison was one of the contest’s winners.)

In the evening, there were dancing shows like Discorama or Penthouse 7, where the latest dance crazes were featured. After each dance, all youngsters like myself would get up, and follow Mike Monserrat or RayAn Fuentes as they showed us how to do the dance steps.

Then there were also game shows like Spin-a-Win, a takeoff from the US game show Wheel of Fortune, where contestants had to spin a wheel, guess a letter, and guess the word or phrase on the huge standing board, in exchange for money and prizes.

We also had IQ 7, where Bong Barrameda (remember him?) was king. It was a quiz show whose contestants had to be challenged in general knowledge (history, math, civics, geography, etc.) and also trivia. I remember racking my brain, as well, trying to answer each difficult question before the buzzer sounded.

All these shows were fun and entertaining, and even educational. The hosts were all decent, well-educated and well-mannered. They treated contestants and guests like the respected/respectable human beings they were.

Their hosting skills were considered topnotch. They were articulate (it didn’t matter whether they spoke in English or Filipino) and asked intelligent questions of their guests. They certainly didn’t need any scantily clad girls prancing in the background to attract more followers to their shows. It was just sheer talent and excellent hosting that reigned supreme on national TV.

When the ’80s rolled in, suddenly there was an explosion of off-color jokes and men gyrating like macho dancers on TV. (Thank you, Eat Bulaga, for showing the way.)

Idiotic games in exchange for money became the norm. Any remaining iota of decency was tossed out the window as ill-mannered hosts who poked cruel fun at guests or contestants were everywhere.

I have friends in the TV industry who justify shows like Willing Willie. They tell me, that’s the kind of entertainment the masses want these days.

The audience, they say, want to identify with TV hosts who are as ill-mannered and uneducated as they are, but who give them hope for a better future. They are poor and don’t know any better.

So the parents allow their kid to perform like a macho dancer trying to attract a homosexual client, and they, the TV network, and the audience doesn’t see anything wrong with it. They don’t feel the child has been abused, and wonder what all the fuss is about. All the parents know is that the kid won a huge amount of cash—P10,000—in exchange for that performance which, to them, was cute.

So it’s not only that Philippine TV has changed but also we the audience have changed. Our once erudite taste for classy TV programming has shifted to base mediocrity. And since that is what the audience demands, that is what the TV networks will continue to feed us.

Yes, I would agree that it’s probably due to the worsening state of education in the country, and the growing poverty in our midst. And for TV networks, the bottomline IS their bottomline. They need advertisers to survive.

It’s all about the big bucks, really. After all, TV networks aren’t in the business of changing the viewing habits of televiewers, or educating them in the finer things in life. They just want to follow an easy, tried-and-tested formula for their shows so they can get the advertisers.

I can understand the financials. All TV networks need the revenue to survive the competition. But what about honor and decency, and making a difference? Don’t these matter anymore?

If we are to grow as a nation of honorable, respectable citizens, I think our TV networks need to come onboard that train, as well. They can’t wiggle their way out of this one and say, they’re already doing their patriotic duty by producing kick-ass news programs and talk shows. They have to change the way they entertain as well.

As I told a friend working in the industry recently, if TV networks continue to feed crap to their audience, then that is what they get—a crappy audience.

(Originally published in the BusinessMirror on April 1, 2011. My column, Something Like Life, is published every Friday in the Life section of said paper. Photo from www.pinoyamsbisyoso.com)

Monday bitching...Ruffa, the woman with 9 lives

(Photo from The Filipino Express)

I don't know how you guys are taking the weekend pronouncements of Ruffa Gutierrez, the latest Pinoy celebrity who has confessed to having been physically abused by one's spouse.

Normally, I feel sympathy towards women who have been abused and violated by their husbands, or men in general. But in Ruffa's case, I somehow find some of her statements almost unbelievable. (This woman, after all, was involved in the 1994 Manila Film Fest scam, along with her mother, the irrepressible Annabel Rama, brother Rocky, and that woman with the truly unforgettable name...Viveka Babajee.) I mean, being physically abused for 15 hours daw? Buhay pa sya? Then she says she was electrocuted by hubby Yilmaz Bektas while she was in the bathtub...again, buhay pa din sya? My God! This woman must have 9 lives, like a cat!

So the beatings began even before she and Yilmaz were married...so what possessed her to marry him? That's awfully stupid isn't it? I mean, all this time I thought she had some brains to go with her beauty...Baka nasilaw sa dami ng carats na binigay ni "lovee" anoh? Ayan, nainggit kasi ke Greta.

Btw, how come not one showbiz TV host has actually pinned down Ruffa and gotten a real honest answer on whether or not she was married to one Richard Daiola prior to Yilmaz? Who the hell is this guy and why, despite the massive resources of both GMA News and ABS-CBN/ANC News, he has yet to be unearthed. No one has secured even one photo of this mystery man.

Naku 'dong, bet you there's gonna be a Ruffa Gutierrez Story film out soon. Heh!

The most annoying people on TV

1. Rachel Ray

This cook (please don't make the mistake of calling her a chef!) is extremely annoying in her new show. Why do we have to listen to her give us advice on hair, makeup, fashion? I mean c'mon, she can hardly cook if it weren't for readily available mixes and ingredients from the supermarket! Now we have to take advice from her regarding the right shoes to wear or how to fix up our homes?!

And notice how loud she's become? She's like all over the place yelling EVOO, Yum-mo and all imaginable stupidities. She reminds me of Love Anover who was so fabulous when she was on Probe. Then she joined GMA's morning show and she just became deafening! Just because you're short you don't need to shout to get attention. I don't know what Oprah was thinking when she decided to produce Rachel's show. Just because she can't cook doesn't mean she has to go on and produce a cooking show and model Rachel after her, talking about life's problems and fashion issues. The woman is hardly qualified to talk about these topics. She should have stuck with her 30-minute meals show. Geez I'll pick Martha anytime over Rachel Ray's show.

2. Kris Aquino

Just because she gets a kick out of displaying and talking about her entire life in public doesn't mean she has to force her contestants to do the same. What's with those personal questions Kris? You're audience isn't even interested in what your contestants are saying, just what they do to win the grand prizes. And what's with the long gowns? Parang pupunta ka sa graduation ball palagi? Feeling mo si Vanna White ka? I'm so glad Edu Manzano has taken over Kris's show. We hope it becomes permanent. Now that's a good game show host for you. Hey why isn't any network giving Edu his own talk show? He deserves one.

3. Senjaya Malakar

What's with this American Idol wanna-be? The past two installments of the Idols' performances showed that he can let his hair down (or up as in last night's ponytail mohawk) but where's the vocal prowess? He was good in the auditions and vocally stronger than his sister, but ultimately, its experience that counts and he lacks enough to give depth and emotion to his performances. I think his sister would have been the better performer in the end. What's more, this idiot makes lame retorts to Simon's critiques and fails miserably. Now I hear there's a YouTube member, "J", who has vowed to go on a hunger strike until Senjaya gets voted off the show. I might just join her.

(UPDATE: Curly-haired and chubby Chris Sligh has just been voted off. Too bad, because he is actually a good singer but last night's performance was just his weakest. Read it on GMA News TV.)

4. Angel Jacob and the US girls hosts

I used to like Good Finds until Angel Jacob took over. Her voice is pitchy and irritating, and she talks like she's reading off a script all the time. I can't stand five minutes of her show which has just become a jumble of boring features and subjects. Bring back the witty Jenni Epperson.

I don't know the names of these US Girls hosts except for Angel Aquino. She's the only one who is smart and articulate among the three. The names of the other two hosts are not even worthwhile to remember. The show, which was meant to replace the well-polished and sophisticated "F", is now just another pa-cute show where the hosts try to get away by looking great instead of sounding intelligent. Angel, umalis ka na 'jan at baka mahawa ka pa sa dalawang 'yan!

Is it true Amanda Griffin is getting her own show on the Lifestyle Network?! Oh no, this is when "F" started sounding inane. Amanda's forgettable food reviews: "It's good, it's really good!" Girl, you better bring your thesaurus to those shoots! (What's a thesaurus daw? OMG!)

5. Willie Revillame and the Eat Bulaga hosts

Do these hosts really think they're funny? Eat Bulaga has long outlived its entertainment factor it should be shut down. Individually Joey de Leon and Vic Sotto may be wits, but together, along with their hapless supporting cast of thousands, they are just lame and depressing. Mag-isip naman kayo ng bagong show noh? Di na kayo nakakatawa! In hindsight I actually liked Joey de Leon a few times when he co-hosted a public affairs show. And what the heck is Tito Sotto thinking still hanging around that show? Wala bang natutuwa sa 'yo sa Senado? Maybe it's time to move on guys and reinvent yourselves. You're too old to be acting silly like you do on your show every day. Iskul Bukol days are so over!

And Willie Revillame? Gads, what a bore. He thinks he's so frikking handsome and witty I'd like to throw the dining table at the TV set everytime I see his face. I don't know why ABS-CBN is still keeping this guy despite his faux pas. His personal life is disgusting. But more importantly, he's not funny! Doesn't anybody over there get it?

All these hosts are so like Jay Leno who now has to resort to toilet humor and sex jokes just to get a rise from his audience.