MANILA, Philippines – New radio station DWPM Radyo 630, a joint undertaking between ABS-CBN and House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s Prime Media Holdings Incorporated (Prime Media), launched softly on Friday, June 30, a development that will be keenly watched on how this project will fare under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr..

As disclosed last month when ABS-CBN announced the closure of its news channel TeleRadyo due to financial losses, Prime Media has a controlling 51% in a joint venture company, while ABS-CBN owns 49% of the company. In the joint venture, ABS-CBN will provide the content, while Prime Media controls the broadcasting.

DWPM Radyo 630 TeleRadyo Serbisyo Para sa Mamamayan (TeleRadyo Service For the People) signals ABS-CBN’s return on free radio, more than three years after it lost its free-to-air channels. It is also on ABS-CBN’s cable service, Sky Cable, and other cable subscribers, as well as ABS-CBN’s The Filipino Channel.

The station opened with the program, Gising Pilipinas, anchored by veteran ABS-CBN reporters Alvin Elchico and Doris Bigornia from 6 am to 7:30 am. They were the former hosts of TeleRadyo’s SRO from 8 pm to 10 pm. Elchico said the new station was still unavailable on YouTube.

MANILA, Philippines – The hosts of ABS-CBN TeleRadyo’s morning show Sakto called on their followers to tune in to their new station on Friday, June 30, as the news channel shuts down after 37 years under the Lopez-led media organization.

Sakto hosts Jeff Canoy, Johnson Manabat, weatherman Ariel Rojas, and sports newscaster Migs Bustos put on dark suits while Amy Perez donned black pants, a black blouse, and a green blazer on Thursday, June 29.

“All good things must come to an end. Pero sabi nga ni @migsbustos ‘Minsan kahit laway lang…puwede ka magtagumpay’ (As Migs Bustos said, ‘Sometimes, you can be successful just with talking),'” Canoy, also chief of reporters of ABS-CBN Integrated News, said on Wednesday as he asked followers to watch Sakto’s special show on Thursday.

The shows’ hosts thanked their Kapamilya viewers on online platforms such as YouTube and Facebook for supporting the news channel over the past three years. On Facebook, DZMM TeleRadyo has 2.7 million followers; on Twitter, 2.5 million followers; and 608,000 YouTube subscribers.

Before Sakto’s show on Thursday ended, Canoy said, “Hiling po sana namin, tomorrow…‘wag kayo bibitiw sa channel at mas malayo pa, mas malayo ang mararating natin.”

(We ask you that tomorrow, stay tuned to the channel as we will have a wider reach.)

“Magkikita at magkakarinigan pa tayo bukas sa radyo 630 (We will still see you and you can still listen to us tomorrow on radio 630),” added Perez.

A new station, DWPM, using DZMM’s previous frequency, 630 kHz in the AM band, will have its soft launch tomorrow under new management, a joint venture between ABS-CBN and House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s Prime Media Holdings Corporation.

Rappler learned that some of TeleRadyo’s staff and anchors will be joining this new station, while a number are opting to quit for better-paying opportunities.

Veteran ABS-CBN anchors Tony Velasquez and Karmina Constantino thanked those who watched their TeleRadyo show, On The Spot, and disclosed that they will be part of the new station although their time slot is still unknown.

“Samahan n’yo pa rin po kami sa bagong kabanata ng ating kuwento sa mas pinalawak pa na paghahatid ng serbisyo. Kaya tayo po ay magkikita at magkakarinigan pa rin po tayo sa radyo 630,” Velasquez said.

(Please join us in the new chapter of our story through wider service delivery. We will still see and listen to each other via radio 630.)

Bernadette Sembrano and Winnie Cordero, hosts of TeleRadyo’s public service show, Lingkod Kapamilya, thanked all the staff who helped the show deliver public service through the years.

ABS-CBN announced on May 23 that it was shutting down TeleRadyo on June 30, Friday.

The former media giant cited TeleRadyo’s financial losses since 2020 after the Duterte administration ordered the network to cease its broadcast operations.

“TeleRadyo has been incurring financial losses since 2020. Since ABS-CBN can no longer sustain TeleRadyo’s operations, ABS-CBN is left with no choice but to cease the operations of TeleRadyo effective 30 June 2023 to prevent further losses,” the publicly-listed company had said.

A total of 68 TeleRadyo employees will be displaced by the closure, a sign of the continuing financial difficulties of the Lopez-led media company. Around half of ABS-CBN’s 11,000 workforce lost their jobs in 2020 after the Duterte administration and the House of Representatives killed ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal.

ABS-CBN suffered a net loss of P13.5 billion in 2020 after it lost its presence on free-to-air tv and radio, and has been in the red since then. With its large debt, it is still bleeding financially, although its net losses declined to P5.6 billion in 2021 and P2.6 billion in 2022.

It has had to sign various deals with its former competitors, GMA Network Incorporated and MediaQuest Holdings Incorporated’s TV5, in order to survive.

Prior to the shutdown of ABS-CBN’s free-to-air channels in May 2020, ABS-CBN TeleRadyo was known as DZMM 630 TeleRadyo when it still had the frequency in the AM band. It dropped the call sign DZMM after it was no longer available on free radio.

DZMM was launched in 1986 after the Lopezes recovered their radio stations following the EDSA People Power Revolution. In 2007, it pioneered in fusing radio and television when it launched DZMM TeleRadyo through a live video broadcast of its radio feed aired on ABS-CBN’s cable television.

Through the years, a number of DZMM hosts and anchors became national celebrities and politicians, led by Noli “Kabayan” de Castro, who was elected Philippine vice president in 2004 when he ran with incumbent President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Lawyers such as Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Chiz Escudero, who had public service shows on DZMM, went on to become senators.

After DZMM lost its 630 kHz frequency, some of its popular hosts, such as Ted Failon and Anthony Taberna, moved to other radio-TV stations.

The Supreme Court has disbarred newly appointed Presidential Adviser for Poverty Alleviation Lorenzo "Larry" Gadon over his "profane" remarks against a journalist.

In a tweet on Wednesday, the SC Public Information Office said the SC en banc voted 15-0 to disbar Gadon.

“By a unanimous vote of 15-0, the Supreme Court En Banc resolved to disbar Atty. Lorenzo "Larry" Gadon for the viral video clip where he repeatedly cursed and uttered profane remarks against journalist Raissa Robles,” it said.

In a statement, Gadon said he would file a motion for reconsideration "on the ground that the penalty is too harsh."

“My remedy and reaction to this is to file a Motion For Reconsideration on the ground that the penalty is too harsh for the alleged cause which was my outburst against a reporter who was blatantly spreading lies against Pres BBM (Bongbong Marcos) during the campaign period intended to fool the public on issues intended to cause damage to the candidacy of Pres Ferdinand Marcos Jr.,” he said.

Gadon's disbarment came two days after Malacañang announced his appointment as Presidential Adviser for Poverty Alleviation.

According to the Presidential Communications Office, Gadon's appointment "reflects the government's commitment to address one of the most pressing challenges faced by our nation."

'Scandalous' video

According to the SC PIO, the justices found the video clip "indisputably scandalous that it discredits the legal profession."

The SC cited Gadon particularly for violating Canon II on Propriety, of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability, "which imposes that a lawyer shall, at all times, act with propriety and maintain the appearance of propriety in personal and professional dealings, observe honesty, respect and courtesy, and uphold the dignity of the legal profession consistent with the highest standards of ethical behavior."

For the SC, Gadon "failed to realize that lawyers are expected to avoid scandalous behavior, whether in their public or private life."

In his statement, Gadon said the SC decision would not affect his commitment to his new role in the government as Presidential Adviser for Poverty Alleviation.

"The position and the task given to me by the President do not require lawyering hence my suspension and disbarment have no effect on my appointment," he said.

"I will just approach this issue on a personal concern, file a motion for reconsideration and proceed in facing the challenges of the job and aim to serve the public in my best capability," Gadon added.

MANILA, Philippines – ABS-CBN’s former radio frequency, 630 kHz in the AM band, is back on air under new management.

A test broadcast on Monday, June 26, had the radio station airing pop music. A disc jockey identified the station as Radyo 630, DWPM, “Para sa Mamamayan” (For the People).

As of posting, the managers and anchors of DWPM had yet to introduce themselves to the public.

ABS-CBN announced on May 23 that it would shut down its TeleRadyo news channel by June 30, this coming Friday, to prevent further losses. On the same day, however, it announced a joint venture agreement with House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s Prime Media Holdings Incorporated (Prime Media) that would allow it to “find ways to continue providing news to the public,” and possibly help those who will be displaced by TeleRadyo’s closure find new jobs.

ABS-CBN anchor Karen Davila tweeted on May 23 that while TeleRadyo would cease operating, “DZMM will return on AM radio reaching millions of Filipinos once more.”

A total of 68 employees of TeleRadyo will lose their jobs on Friday when the news channel shuts down. After ABS-CBN lost its free-to-air frequencies in May 2020, DZMM TeleRadyo 630, was among the Kapamilya channels that – aside from cable tv – could only be seen and heard on digital platforms such as Facebook and YouTube.

When ABS-CBN still had its frequencies, DZMM 630 was among the leading AM radio stations in the Philippines along with GMA Network’s DZBB and Manila Broadcasting Company’s DZRH.

With the decline in radio listenership over two decades ago, DZMM pioneered in fusing radio and television via DZMM TeleRadyo in 2007, allowing the news channel to expand internationally via ABS-CBN’s The Filipino Channel and reach overseas Filipinos.

In ABS-CBN’s disclosure on May 23, the Lopez-led company said the joint venture with Prime Media will produce various programs that will be “supplied to broadcasters and other 3rd party platforms, including Philippine Collective Media Corporation (PCMC).”

Prime Media disclosed on May 29 that its joint venture (JV) with ABS-CBN “will only produce and distribute radio content.”

“The objective of the JV is to provide accurate and balanced news and information to the country and public service. The content produced by the joint venture will be distributed to radio, cable TV and other platforms, including the stations under Philippine Collective Media Company (PCMC). The business model is similar to various local studios and production companies but the content we will produce are not for free TV broadcast,” Prime Media president and chairman Manolito Manalo said.

Prime Media is a subsidiary of RYM Management Corporation, a holding company of the Romualdez family. Its foray into broadcasting was formalized on July 30, 2021, when Prime Media obtained the business and assets of PCMC, and PCMC became a subsidiary of Prime Media.

PCMC was founded in 2008 by Romualdez. It got its franchise, Republic Act 9773, during the Arroyo administration and began operating radio and television stations in Romualdez’s home region, Eastern Visayas.

In December 2020, Congress amended its franchise from being regional to national, and included the operation of a digital television system. It has expanded its broadcast footprint in the past three years and now operates nationwide. Romualdez and his wife Yedda were among the 70 lawmakers who voted to deny ABS-CBN a new franchise.