Moms tells it like it is

When yours is one of only 12 shows that have remained on air after the other 12 have been axed since Q-11 started its broadcast, you have every reason to feel proud. That’s just how the people behind Moms (weekdays, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.) feels.

The show, which is now marking its second anniversary, has made the otherwise weak late afternoon timeslot alive with discussion, insights and food for thought. Children from broken families have poured their hearts out to the host-moms, Lani Mercado, Manilyn Reynes and Sherilyn Reyes.

Ladies of the night, though silhouetted, have openly discussed the ups and downs of their trade. Women whose husbands cheated on them freely talked about their problem and how they got around it.

“It’s like some form of catharsis,” Lani explains the show’s success formula. And she’s not just talking for the guests but for herself and her co-hosts as well.

“You feel what the guests feel. And you apply what you learn from them in daily life. Sometimes, I even ask questions from the guest psychologist after the show,” she explains. But lest she get into details and opens a Pandora’s box of controversies, Lani follows this up, saying, “The show has made us better wives and mothers. My husband Bong (Revilla, the senator) himself has noticed that. And I tell him it’s because of the show.”

Manilyn is more specific. “I now know why men are so engrossed when they watch TV. I learned that from our male guests.” Perhaps, she has seen it in husband Aljon Jimenez. But it’s only lately — thanks to the show — that she understood why Aljon seems lost in a world of his own when he’s in front of the TV set.

Moms’ influence has become widely-felt, not only where family relations and other topics are concerned. It has sparked lots of reactions, even in the simplest things, like the pair of earrings Sherilyn is wearing, or Manilyn’s weight loss. The comments are all over the more than 100 e-groups the show has given birth to.

Other viewers are not as fashion conscious. Some inquire about job openings and livelihood seminars. The show, in that sense, has become a one-stop shop for concerns on the family, livelihood opportunities, religion, etc.

Sometimes, discussions get so heated, one hour of the show is over before you know it. The hosts themselves feel so much has been left unsaid or unexplored. So the show’s executives come up with a follow-up, or part two right after.

One such episode featured problematic teenagers, which spawned a follow-up discussion on how fathers deal with truant daughters. Another focused on problematic male teenagers, which gave birth to an episode on their female counterparts.

“You’d think we’d run out of topics for this daily one-hour show, don’t you? ” Anselle Beluso, the show’s creative director and head writer asks. “Surprise, surprise! There are still so many things to explore and discuss.”

Choosing a topic after so much brainstorming is one thing. Getting the right guest mix is another. The most interesting topics can fall flat if guests feel bad sitting beside each other.

No one knows this more than Beluso. One guest, for instance, suddenly became tight-lipped when the camera lights went on. Everybody was at a loss, until someone told him that the person concerned felt queasy sitting right beside a fellow guest.

Lesson learned: Research on whatever relationships exist between the guests first. That’s exactly why the show holds pre-interview sessions with guests. These answer a lot of questions and avoid several problems once the cameras are on and precious studio time is used.

Just what questions will scare the guests away? How can host and guest compromise about the topic and how much is the guest willing to reveal? Can the question be rephrased to take out its sting?

“Our hosts use the so-called second and third level type of questioning,” says Beluso. He cites an example.

“Instead of asking about the person’s experience as a mistress, we tell her how hard it must be to be the other woman,” he says. This show of empathy makes the person open up and pour his heart out. Conversation unfolds smoothly, naturally.

Asking the person pointblank about her experience as a mistress would have been the ultimate turn-off. And this is where a lot of spadework comes in. The Moms’ researchers are always on their toes, digging up data on the guests’ relationships, background, personalities, etc. They even act like mini-psychologists in phrasing questions that don’t offend.

That’s the only way the show can bring out the truth, and nothing but. It helps, too, that guests also include experts in the field, like a child psychologist, a marriage counselor, etc. They help separate the chaff from the grain, the myths from the facts. They sift through all the inputs and make sense out of them.

But they make it a point never ever to preach. Leaving the judgment up to the viewer is, and will always be Moms’ policy and one of its strongest points.

Next month, the show catches the holiday fever by going out-of-town and showing how people spend Christmas in the provinces. This is expected to open the city folks’ eyes on how different, and far, far simpler the annual tradition is in the barrios.

As always, Moms will present the facts. Which Christmas is more meaningful: The one in the countryside or the one in the city? Viewers will decide or draw their own conclusions. The hosts and the guests only act as guides.

That’s where the significance of it all lies.