The ‘softer’ side of Korina

She can be as tough as a nail – hitting politicians, trying criminals through publicity, espousing hardly popular causes.

But she can also be as soft as marshmallow.

Yes, Korina Sanchez is human, after all. And she shows this in Morning Girls, her daily show on ABS-CBN (Monday to Friday, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.) with Kris Aquino.

Korina sheds her corporate attire and dons casual wear – up to the downright pedestrian maong, in this, her closest brush with showbiz so far.

The wardrobe overhaul is not as drastic as the culture shock Korina felt the minute she co-hosted Morning Girls. Peeking into other people’s lives – something she used to think is nobody else’s business – is foreign to Korina.

So when Kris egged her to ask Bernard Palanca if Jackie Forster is indeed harassing Rica Peralejo on the cellular phone, Korina couldn’t believe she got around to doing it.

"Kris does not know it. But I was depressed the whole week!" reveals the hard-hitting broadcast journalist. Worse, she even thought of backing out from the show.

But Korina soon got over it when she realized there’s no escaping the call of the hour. Now, it’s up to her to ask the most intriguing questions "without ruining my image."

Today, Korina no longer flips when she asks Danica and Oyo Boy Sotto about their love lives.

It becomes even spicier when someone with hardly any knowledge of showbiz like Korina reacts to the stars’ answers.

Surprisingly, those from whom Korina expects to get the most violent reactions, are the most receptive to her image modification. "Pia Hontiveros and Cheri Mercado for instance, were so happy to know that Piolo Pascual is religious and Bernard Palanca is conservative," reveals Korina.

The key, muses Korina, lies in her layman-like approach to showbiz issues. Her wide-eyed, transparent reactions – untainted by any trace of jadedness – is refreshing to see.

Seeing how a showbiz outsider reacts to issues as trivial as who’s going out with who, can be an experience in itself. And when the showbiz outsider happens to be a top newscaster like Korina, the impact is so strong, it can actually blur the line that separates the high-brow from the masa.

Korina herself feels like someone getting a box of surprises first thing in the morning. A busy person like her who admits "I haven’t watched TV after Regine Velasquez’s generation," can get the shock of her life to learn about say, a showbiz couple whose marriage hit the rocks only after a few months after their celebrated wedding. Or about how two young stars disappear on the set of a movie they’re making, only to deny that they have a relationship.

Korina used to be just as clueless about the names of today’s young stars. She had to secretly ask it from someone in the know.

That’s where Kris comes to the rescue. Kris is to showbiz born. She basks in the glow of the klieg lights, delights in turning voyeur to her fellow stars’ colorful lives.

Where Korina is cautious, Kris is transparent. Where Korina would rather stick to the facts because her news training demands that of her, Kris puts color into events – the brighter the better.

At the presscon ABS-CBN hosted for the extension of their contract for 26 more weeks, there was no stopping the irrepressible Kris from ribbing Korina about how she could have been her (Kris’) sister-in-law.

"Imagine, Noynoy (Aquino, her brother) took a bullet for you!" she teased Korina. Kris goes on to say that Korina wanted Noynoy to go to their place after a lovers’ quarrel. That was at the height of the coup attempt on former President Cory Aquino’s government. Soldiers were out in the streets and the atmosphere was tense. Noynoy left his place minus bodyguards and got shot along the way. He survived to tell his younger sister the story.

If Kris can tease Korina that way, it’s because the former treats her co-host like a protective sister. When management approved Deo Endrinal’s suggestion to get Korina as Kris’ co-host, Kris saw to it that Korina got a reasonable talent fee.

"I’m only a soldier in the network while Kris is a talent. She can get away with it," says a deeply appreciative Korina.

Korina, on the other hand, turns out to be Kris’ most avid supporter.

"In a place where people are careful, Kris is not afraid to be honest," observes Korina. "I’ve told Kris before that she’s like the kid sister I never had. She defers to me in many things, and I defer to her in many things as well," Korina adds.

The chemistry between them is palpable in their easy banter, their natural conversation flow.

"Give us a topic and we can talk on and on," Kris speaks for both of them. "We’re both strong, misunderstood, intrigue-prone," relates Korina. Both are strongly-opinionated, with years of interviewing the high and the humble between them.

But much as they seem to be cast in the same mold, Kris and Korina are different as night and day. Korina reads true-to-life stories like biographies; Kris is partial to fiction.

Kris sees herself entering politics. Korina has turned down several offers to do a (Sen.) Loren Legarda, because "it’s not in my character to please people."

Kris dreams of doing a teleserye. Hosting a showbiz-oriented talk show is as far as Korina will go in tinseltown. Kris is an open book, Korina would rather remain a mystery to many.

Morning Girls has proven however, that Korina can let her hair down everyday, and emerge none the worse for revealing her more human side.

"I love to laugh, I love to listen to people’s stories. You know how news is – it’s very one-dimensional. You’re not even allowed to smile,"

Kris and Korina accept each other for what they are, and won’t change a thing about the other.

"I’d think twice if Kris was not my co-host," Korina reveals. Kris need not say a word to confirm that the feeling is mutual.

The ratings bear this out. A recent survey showed how Morning Girls edged out the competition (Sis) with a 16.4 percent rating, as opposed to their rival’s 14.3 percent showing in Mega Manila.

"Korina and I are meant to be partners," Kris declares.

At the rate they’re going, Kris and Korina will remain such, not only for the 26 weeks (second season) Morning Girls requires them to, but for a long, long time.