History of Radio And

Television In The
Philippines

Maria Anngela P. Eusebio

Grade 12 A- Leadership

Radio and Television Production

Mike Robles
October 17, 2019
Television in the Philippines was introduced in 1953, making it the first Southeast Asian country
and the 2nd in Asia to do so. But even before that, during the late 1940s, a number of academic
experiments had been done and replicated by Filipino engineers and students.

The network that introduced it, ABS-CBN, is currently the leading network in terms of ratings,
reach, and revenue.

From 1975 to 1978, the Sinag Awards were given by the Philippine Academy for Television Arts
and Sciences (PATAS). On the other hand, the Star Awards for Television is the oldest existing
television awards in the country handed out annually by the Philippine Movie Press Club and are
voted by the press.

I. Early Timeline (1946 – 1959 )

James Lindenberg, an American engineer dubbed as the

"father of Philippine television," began assembling
transmitters and established the Bolinao Electronics
Corporation (BEC) on June 13, 1946. It was named after
his wife's hometown of Bolinao, Pangasinan. Three
years later, he was the first to apply for a license in
Philippine Congress to establish a television station.
After a year, on June 14, 1950, his request was granted.
Due to the scarcity of raw materials and strict import
control since 1948, he was compelled to branch into radio broadcasting instead

James Lindenberg (December 20, 1921 – April 28, 2009)[1] was born in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. He moved to the Philippines in the 1940s. He is credited for his founding of
Bolinao Electronics Corporation (BEC), the precursor of ABS-CBN Corporation, and dubbed as
the Father of Philippine Television.

Autobiography
Antonio Rivera Quiríno, Sr. was a Philippine judge. He was the
youngest brother of President Elpídio Quiríno. He helped
develop the Alto Broadcasting Corporation or ABS before it was
later absorbed by the Chronicle Broadcasting Network (CBN) to
become ABS-CBN after the merger. Quiríno established the first
television station in the Philippines primarily to support the
reelection campaign of his brother, President Elpídio Quiríno,
for the 1953 elections
 NEWS FLASHES
Recognition of independence
The United States of America granted independence to the
Philippines on July 4, 1946. In accordance with the Philippine Independence Act (more
popularly known as the "Tydings–McDuffie Act"), President Harry S. Truman issued
Proclamation 2695 of July 4, 1946 officially recognizing the independence of the Philippines.
On the same day, representatives of the United States of America and of the Republic of the
Philippines signed a Treaty of General Relations between the two governments. The treaty
provided for the recognition of the independence of the Republic of the Philippines as of July 4,
1946, and the relinquishment of American sovereignty over the Philippine Islands.

Independence Day shifted

The Philippines currently celebrates its Independence Day on June 12, the anniversary
of Emilio Aguinaldo's declaration of independence from Spain in 1898. The declaration
was not recognized by the United States which, after defeating the Spanish in the Battle
of Manila Bay in May that year, acquired the Philippine Islands via the Treaty of
Paris that ended the Spanish–American War.
From 1946 to 1961, the Philippines observed Independence Day on July 4. On May 12,
1962, President Macapagal issued Presidential Proclamation No. 28 proclaiming June
12, 1962 as a special public holiday throughout the Philippines. In 1964, Republic Act
No. 4166 changed the date of Independence Day from July 4 to June 12 and renamed
the July 4 holiday as Philippine Republic Day.

The Roxas Administration

When the Congress of the Philippines was convened in 1945, the legislators elected in 1941
chose Manuel Roxas as Senate President. In the Philippine national elections of 1946, Roxas ran
for president as the nominee of the liberal wing of the Nacionalista Party. He had the staunch
support of General MacArthur. His opponent was Sergio Osmeña, who refused to campaign,
saying that the Filipino people knew his reputation. In the April 23, 1946 election, Roxas won 54
percent of the vote, and the Liberal Party won a majority in the legislature. When the Philippines
gained independence from the United States on July 4, 1946, Roxas became the first president of
the new republic.

The Quirino Administration

Quirino assumed the presidency on April 17, 1948, taking his oath of office two days after the
death of Manuel Roxas. In 1949 the wartime president, Jose P. Laurel of the Nacionalista Party,
ran against Quirino in what has been described as a particularly corrupt and venal exercise in
democracy. Although historians in general accept that Laurel was elected, he refused to
challenge Quirino's declared victory with force.
 POLITICAL CARTOON

Radio Interview of President-elect Roxas over

the National
[Released on May 16, 1946 (American Standard Time)]

NOTE.—In this interview with Mr. Richard Harkness, the President indicated that of our interna l
problems the land problem is the most serious, for under the prevailing land system the average
annual cash income of the tenant is very low—around 30 gold dollars only before the war.

This problem has its root deep in history. Long before Spain came, the land was more or less
communal, and its administration had been placed in the hands of the head, the datu or the sultan.
Gradually the idea of individual ownership developed and in the 15th or 16th century the land
occupied by the barangay was already generally and in large part divided, each one knowing his
own. As the Spanish rule was being extended here, gratuitous land grants were awarded to those
who came over to help in the discovery and conquest. The documents of these grants were not
drawn up in precise terms, or were dishonestly made, and many lots owned privately were included
in many of them. Court litigations arose in view thereof and these only served to fan general
discontent for usually the small owners lost in the court battles. This was one method whereby
extensive landholdings developed.
Other big landholdings grew out of the misfortune or shiftless character of many native owners
who borrowed at usurious interest and soon could no longer pay their debts except by transferring
their rights on their lands.

The big landholdings that were causing much trouble at the beginning of the 20th century were
those held by the Roman Catholic Church, comprising 420,000 acres or 190,000 hectares, most
of which, the tenants thereon believed, had belonged to their ancestors who were deprived of
their rights in some way or other. The U. S. authorities in the Philippines saw immediately that
here was an opportunity at social amelioration, and the Government bought most of the estates
for 15 million pesos to be sold on long-term installments. Aside from this major transaction, the
Government had not done much; and President Roxas had indicated it as his policy to buy and
subdivide the larger estates

JOURNAL
The Journal of History is the official publication of the Philippine
National Historical Society (first named Philippine Historical Society),
an organization of historians and practitioners of history, organized in
February 1941. It is a nationally refereed journal that publishes selected
papers from the National Conferences on National and Local History of
the Philippine National Historical Society which have been
recommended by an Editorial Advisory Board. The Journal publishes
articles on local/regional and national history presented by young and
upcoming scholars as well as recognized historians and other specialists
on Philippine culture and society.
 II. Rising Popularity (1960- 1972)
TV sets became the most sellable appliance in the urban
areas. Also within this period, other VHF TV stations opened.
These include the DZBB-TV owned by Robert Stewart, DZFM-
TV, DZTM-TV owned by the Roces family, DZKB-TV , DWGT-
TV, and DZTV-TV owned by Andres Soriano, DZRH-TV owned
by Manuel Elizalde.

MANUEL ELIZALDE
In June 1971, Elizalde claimed discovery to a primitive tribe untouched by civilization, who
lived in caves and survived by hunting and gathering. The "Tasadays" were found in a forest
in South Cotabato, Mindanao.

TASADAY
The story gained traction in international media, some complimenting
him as "a visionary idealist who cared more about the hard-pressed
national minorities than about his family fortune". However, all visits
from foreign media and scholars were supervised by the Presidential
Assistance on National Minorities (PANAMIN) which was led by
Elizalde himself.

Independent anthropologists were prohibited to enter the Tasaday

reservation area, thus at the time there was no scholarly paper published
on the Tasaday. It was only after the Marcos downfall that a Swiss
journalist, Oswald Iten, entered the area and found the so-called
Paleolithic tribe dressed in T-shirts and living in huts. Many other local
and foreign anthropologists decried Elizalde's claims, calling it an
elaborate hoax
 News flashes
March 29 – The New People's Army is formed by merging
of Jose Maria Sison's revolutionary band with Bernabe Buscayno's
Huk's peasant's army.[1]

May 11 – Tuguegarao, Cagayan experienced a heatwave with a

recorded temperature of 42.2 °C.

July 19 – Miss Philippines Gloria Diaz was crowned Miss Universe 1969.

July 26 – United States President Richard Nixon visits the Philippines.[1]

September 10 – Inauguration of the Cultural Center of the Philippines along Manila Bay.[1]

September 12 – A Philippine Airlines plane hits a tree and crashes on a hill in Antipolo,
Rizal, killing 45 of 47 people on board. It is then the country's worst air accident since 1960. [2]

October 15 – DZKB-TV Channel 9 of Kanalon Broadcasting System (now Radio Philippines

Network), the Philippines TV station, owner by Roberto S. Benedicto, is launched.

November 11 – In the nationwide general elections held, incumbents Pres. Marcos and Vice
Pres. Lopez are reelected in their respective positions, with the former as the first (and the last in
electoral history) to win for a second full term as President of the Philippines,[1] and the latter
elected to a third full term as Vice President of the Philippines. The administration party,
the Nacionalista Party, won 6 out of 8 seats in the Philippine Senate and 88 out of 110 seats in
the House of Representatives.
 III. Marcos Era and Martial Law (1972-1986)

When the Philippines was placed under martial rule, Marcos ordered
the take over of media firms. Government troops entered radio and
television stations, and they were placed under military control. All
media outlets that were critical of the Marcos administration were
padlocked and sequestered.

DZXL-TV Channel 4 of ABS-CBN was seized by the Office of

Press Secretary Francisco Tatad and the National Media Production
Center of Gregorio Cendaña and was renamed DWGT-TV Channel
4, the government channel. DZKB-TV Channel 9 and DZTV-TV
Channel 13 were eventually controlled by the then Ambassador
Roberto Benedicto, and Bob Stewart’s DZBB-TV Channel 7 was later allowed to operate with
limited three-month permits.

The Martial Law era also jump-started the beginnings of Philippine cable television. In 1969
Baguio City witnessed the beginning of the first ever cable company in the country. In the late
1970s, the MPI formed the country's first major cable firm, Sining Makulay, which at first served
parts of Quezon City, Makati, San Juan and Paranaque in Metro Manila, and included the
country's 1st ever local cable stations, SMI Channels 5 and 10 - the latter showing Chinese
programs. It later expanded to other major cities in the country. Satellite broadcasts link ing the
entire country, began early in the 70s by ABS-CBN thru trial runs, also began at that time, with
RPN, IBC, BBC and later on GMA and MBS starting simulcasts of programs from Manila to the
provinces across the country's 3 major island groups.
LETTER
MALACAÑANG
MANILA

Letter of Instruction No. 5

The Secretary
Department of Justice
Manila

Pursuant to Proclamation No. 1081 dated Sept. 21, 1972, and in my capacity as commander- in-
chief of all the armed forces of the Philippines and in order to prevent the escape from the country
of persons who are known to be actively engaged or suspected to be actively engaged in a crimina l
conspiracy to seize political and state power in the Philippines and to take over the Governme nt
by force and violence the extent of which has now assumed the proportion of an actual war against
our people and their legitimate Government, you and all subordinate officials under you are hereby
ordered not to issue any police or immigration clearance to any citizen of the Philippines who may
wish to depart from the Philippines for any foreign country after the date of this order except only
to those citizens of the Philippines who are being sent abroad in the service of the Government or
to those citizens of the Philippines who are members of the crew of any inter-ocean going vessel
or to those citizens of the Philippines who are member of the crew of any commercial aircraft
engaged in the international carriage of passengers or cargoes or both. In all such exceptional cases,
care must be exercised to fully identify the individual in whose favor such police or immigra tio n
clearance is to be issued.

This order shall remain effectively for the duration of the present national emergency or until
otherwise ordered by me or by my designated representative.

Done in the City of Manila, this 22nd day of September, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred
and seventy-two

(Sgd.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS

Ferdinand Marcos, in full Ferdinand Edralin Marcos,
was born on September 11, 1917 at Sarrat, Philippines. He died
on September 28, 1989 at Honolulu, Hawaii. He is a Philippine
lawyer and politician who, as head of state from 1966 to 1986,
established an authoritarian regime in the Philippines that came
under criticism for corruption and for its suppression of
democratic processes

Felipe Enrique Lapuz Gozon is a Filipino lawyer

and the chairman and CEO of GMA Network Inc., one of the
largest media networks in the Philippines.
A lawyer by profession, the Yale-educated Gozon is seen as the
network executive who has successfully turned-
around GMA from its state as the one of the leading television
networks in the Philippines to its current stature, at some point
toppling the long-dominant ABS-CBN in 2004 from their Mega
Manila stronghold until today in the Mega Manila ratings. Under
his watch, the network has also experienced stability in terms of
revenues, mostly from advertising and other revenue sources.

Martial law was the white cloth that a heavily-bemedalled Marcos

had only to drop to seal democracy’s death by firing squad.
 The Free Press knew that the Constitutional Convention was
going to hand Marcos everything he wanted on a silver platter.

Like many strongmen before him, Ferdinand Marcos used the

looming threat of Communism to wrest power, first by suspending
the writ of habeas corpus.
INTERVIEWS
The former President, who fled the presidential palace Feb. 25, apparently made a surprise
telephone call to the station's early-morning program, ''Let's Be Happy,'' from his exile in
Honolulu.

Speaking almost entirely in the Philippine language of Tagalog, he told his listeners: ''Don't
worry about my plans. I have no intention of starting a civil war. I have no intention of
intervening in the politics of the Philippines except to help bring about peace and order.''

''I have no interest in power,'' he added, and later, as the interview came to a close, said, ''I am
irrelevant.''

Mr. Marcos's comments contrasted with those he made in interviews with American reporters,
broadcast last Sunday and again on Friday, in which he maintained that he was still ''the
legitimate President'' of the Philippines. 'Don't Create Trouble'

Today, addressing his followers in his home province of Ilocos Norte, whom he had urged in an
earlier letter to ''remain united so that we will see each other again,'' he said: ''Don't create
trouble. These are dangerous times. Let's not make it harder for our countrymen.''

Mr. Marcos urged the Philippine armed forces to support the Government in power, and he said,
''My advice is for everybody to unite and not fight anymore and face the real danger and that is
the takeover by the terrorists.'' This appeared to be a reference to the Communist insurgency.

At the end of the interview, with the broadcaster Rafael Yabut, Mr. Marcos said: ''Here is
Imelda. She is crying. You may not be able to talk because she is crying and crying.''
JOURNAL ENTRIES
DIARY OF FERDINAND E. MARCOS
Jan. 1, 1983
JAN 2, 832:26 AM
I had sought to protect the sacredness and preciousness of my
memories of the war with the sanctity of silence. So I had refused to
talk or write about them except in an indirect way when forced to as
when I offered my medals to the dead for I believed all such medals
belonged to them.

But the sanctity of silence has been broken by the pettiness and
cynicism that overwhelms the contemporary world. And the small
souls whose vicarious achievement is to insult and offend the mighty
and the achievers have succeeded in trivializing the most solemn and
honorable of deeds and intentions. Their pettiness has besmirched
with the foul attention the honorable service of all who have received
medals and citations in the last World War. They have not excluded
me. But instead have made me their special target as the most visible
of those who offered blood, honor and life to our people.

So I must fight the battles of Bataan all over again. We must walk
our Death March in the hot April sun once again. The Calvary of the
USAFFE must again be told.

For we bleed and die again. This time in the hands of men who claim
to be our countrymen.
LETTERS

LETTER OF INSTRUCTION ON THE “PREVEN-

TION OF THE USE OF PRIVATELY OWNED MEDIA
FACILITIES AND COMMUNICATIONS,” (LOI 1),
MALACAÑANG, MANILA, SEPTEMBER 22, 1972

In view of the present national emergency which has been brought about by the activities
of those who are actively engaged in a criminal conspiracy to seize political and state
power in the Philippines and to take over the Government by force and violence the extent
of which has now assumed the proportion of an actual war against our people and their
legitimate Government, and pursuant to Proclamation No. 1081 dated Sept. 21, 1972,
and in my capacity as commander-in-chief of all the armed forces of the Philippines and
in order to prevent the use of privately owned newspapers, magazines, radio and
television facilities and all other media of communications, for propaganda purposes
against the government and its duly constituted authorities or for any purpose that tends
to undermine the faith and confidence of the people in our Government and aggravate
the present national emergency, you are hereby ordered forthwith to take over and control
or cause the taking over and control of all such newspapers, magazines, radio and
television facilities and all other media of communications, wherever they are, for the
duration of the present national emergency, or until otherwise ordered by me or my duly
designated representative.

In carrying out the foregoing order you are hereby also directed to see to it that reasonable
means are employed by you and your men and that injury to persons and property must
be carefully avoided.

Done in the City of Manila, this 22nd day of September, in the year of our Lord, nineteen
hundred and seventy-two.
 IV. Restoration and Expansion
(1986-2009)
In 1986, in the aftermath of the historic People Power
Revolution which ended the 20-long year dictatorship of
Marcos that forever altered television history, ABS-CBN
was returned after BBC, RPN, and IBC were sequestered
by the Philippine Commission on Good Government
(PCGG), in turn awarded BBC the returning network
through an executive order while RPN and IBC were in turn
handed over to the Government Communications Group. ABS-CBN would begin both
satellite and international broadcasts (the latter a first for a Philippine TV station) in
1989.

Philippine shows began to be exported to other Asian and non-Asian countries. After
the international success of Philippine television (with many TV dramas being broadcast
to many countries), Eat Bulaga! was the first Philippine variety show to be franchised in
another country. Its first franchise is Eat Bulaga! Indonesia.

Cable television was, in keeping with the 1987 Constitution and the Aquino government
policies, removed as a state responsibility in 1988. In this new atmosphere of privatized
cable came what is today the cable firm Sky Cable, created in 1990. 11 years
later, Dream Satellite TV began operations as the country's first Direct-broadcast
satellite television service, lasting up until 2017.
Eduardo "Eddie" Cruz Villanueva (born October 6,
1946), most commonly referred to as "Bro. Eddie Villanueva," is an
evangelist and president-founder of one of the largest "Christ-centered",
"Bible-based", "full- gospel" churches in the world, the Jesus Is Lord
Church Worldwide (JILCW).
Villanueva is also the founder of the Philippines for Jesus Movement
(PJM), which has more than forty bishops from different Christian
churches nationwide as members. He was a presidential candidate in
the 2004 and 2010 Philippine elections and a senatorial candidate in
the 2013 midterm Philippine elections, all as the standard bearer of
the Bangon Pilipinas Party.
Villanueva is a radio-TV evangelist owning ZOE Broadcasting
Network, a commercial television and radio broadcaster which
owns VHF Channel 11 and UHF Channel 33 (Light TV).
He is also the owner and founder of the Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation, Inc. (JILCF), a
Christian school in Bocaue, Bulacan, where his wife, Adoracion Villanueva is the school
president.
NEWS FLASHES

January 1: New Years injuries. Two people died

while hundreds were wounded during the New Year's Eve
revelry, but a health official said the number was lower
compared to last year's firecracker injuries. The Department
of Health listed 630 victims of which 613 sustained
firecracker-related injuries, 15 were hit by stray bullets and
two who accidentally swallowed watusi ("dancing"
firecrackers). The DOH also reported a total of nine stray
bullet injuries.

January 14 : Red Cross abduction. Three ICRC

(International Committee of the Red Cross) workers in
Sulu were abducted by members of the Abu Sayyaf
terrorist group. Abu Sayyaf leader Albader Parad
himself was said to be involved in the kidnapping. The
kidnapping triggered a flurry of rescue activity by the
Armed Forces of the Philippines, resulting in the death
of several soldiers and civilians. Officials said that more
than two dozen people had been abducted in the south
since October, including a 9-year-old girl. Reports
indicated that ransoms had been paid in some of the
abductions. “They’re back kidnapping people for
money,” said army spokeswoman Lieutenant Cacho.

January 15 : World Bank bars Philippine firms for

graft. The international lending agency blacklisted seven
Filipino and Chinese firms that colluded in the bidding
for a Philippine roads project funded by the bank.
Following a major investigation spanning several years
by the Integrity Vice Presidency, the bank found evidence
of a "major cartel involving domestic and international
firms bidding on contracts" in the Philippines. First
Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, husband of Philippine
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (photo, center),
vigorously denied allegations that he was involved in bid
rigging and pocketing bribe money from the contracts
(P70 million = US$1.47 million.)
PHOTOS, NEWSPAPERS, AND POSTERS

V. Shift to Digital (2010-present)

On February 11, 2015, ABS-CBN Corporation formally launched its ABS-

CBN TV Plus service to the public in a ceremony in Quezon City. On
October 3, 2015, ABS-CBN became the first national Philippine television
network to broadcast in high-definition on cable. In 2018, GMA
Network also launched its own digital set-top box service under the generic
name "digibox".
Fernando López was born on April 13, 1904 in Iloilo
City, Iloilo to Benito Villanueva López and Presentacion Javelona
Hofileña. He was the younger brother and only sibling of Eugenio López,
Sr. The López family was the richest family and most influential in the
province.

López studied high school at Colegio de San Juan de Letran, finishing in

1921. He then studied law in the University of Santo Tomas, earning his
Bachelor of Laws degree in 1925. After passing the bar examinations, he
did not go into private practice, but helped his older brother manage the
family business.

The brothers Eugenio and Fernando owned the Iloilo-Negros Air Express Company (the first
Filipino owned air service), the Iloilo Times (El Tiempo), the Manila Chronicle and ABS-CBN
Broadcasting Corporation, LSC (Lopez Sugar Corporation), Bayantel (including Bayan DSL),
SkyCable(including SkyBroadband), Meralco, RLC (Rockwell Land Corporation), Rockwell
Center, First Balfour, Inc., Philippine Electric Corporation (Philec), First Electro Dynamics
Corporation (Fedcor), First Sumiden Circuits, Inc. (FSCI), Securities Transfer Services, Inc.
(STSI), The Medical City (TMC), BayanTrade DotCom, First Gas Holdings Corporation (Santa
Rita), FGP. Corp. (San Lorenzo), FG Hydro Power Corporation (Pantabangan-Masiway), FG
Bukidnon (Agusan mini-hydro), Bauang Private Power Corporation (Bauang), Panay Electric
Company(PECO), First Philippine Industrial Corporation (the major fuel distributor of Shell and
Chevron Caltex in the country), First Philippine Realty Corp, First Philippine Electric Corp.
(First Philec), First Philec Solar Corporation, First Sumiden Circuits, Inc. (FSCI), First Sumiden
Realty, Inc, First Philippine Industrial Park.
NEWS FLASHES
Updated @ 11:18 p.m., Oct. 14, 2019
MANILA, Philippines — Mounting pressure from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA)
might have contributed to the decision of Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Oscar
Albayalde to step down from his post, Sen. Richard Gordon said Monday.
ADVERTISEMENT
READ: Albayalde steps down as PNP chief

In an interview with reporters at the Senate, Gordon disclosed that a message from a retired
general, who called on Albayalde to resign from his post in an effort to “Save the PNP,” was
passed along through text and online messages.
“I think he was also under pressure from the academy. There’s pressure within the academy that:
‘It’s already getting to us…‘We believe that we have an honor code.’ That: ‘We believe we’re
honorable men and women…and we’re getting dragged into that [issue].’ It added pressure,”
Gordon said, speaking partly in Filipino.
Alabayalde, who graduated as a member of the PMA Sinagtala Class of 1986, was accused of
intervening with the dismissal case of his subordinates involved in a questionable 2013 anti-drug
operation in Mexico, Pampanga.
“I received a message from a general with the words “Save the PNP.” It was passed along, I even
received it in one of my group chats,” Gordon said.

The senator further noted that retired Brig. Gen. Rudy Lacadin was also mentioned in the
message.
“Lacadin was also mentioned. He said ‘These are my former junior officers. These were good
officers, including Albayalde.’ But at the end of the message: ‘We need to save the PNP,’”
Gordon went on.
In last week’s Senate hearing, it was Lacadin who claimed that Albayalde called him and asked
about the investigation he was conducting against the Pampanga police officers involved in the
questionable 2013 drug sting.
Lacadin further said that in the same phone conversation, Albayalde, who was then the
Pampanga police chief, had told him about only getting “a little” from the controversial anti-drug
operation.