World War 3 has started! Or at least on primetime.

MANILA, Philippines - Three teams are on a neck-and-neck battle to become Philippine TV’s most prized timeslot, and everybody’s determined to win it. The first two, the country’s biggest networks, offer news and more news to viewers; while the third force recycles a canceled show and uses it against the two. Who shall win this reignited battle of ratings and ads? Who shall conquer the national TV scene and reign supreme?

So who wins? It’s a battle of the burogs and the burgis on primetime TV right now, and we don’t see the fight dwindling anytime soon. It’s the good versus the bad versus the ugly, but we’re not saying which is which. The game just got better, and as long as it’s the viewers benefiting from this network war, we say, bring it on. Let’s meet the teams!

Team kapuso

Team members: Mel “Miss Babaeng-Naglalakad-sa-Dalampasigan-Habang-Hinahanginan” Tiangco and Mike “Imbestigador” Enriquez. Both are prized journalists and pillars of their network’s News and Public Affairs Department. The two boast an experience spanning more than three decades, staying in the industry longer than their opponents have.

The service offering: 24 Oras is just six years old, compared to it’s Kapamilya counterpart which has been on the air since 1987. However, though comparatively young, it has already garnered recognition from New York festivals, making it the only Philippine newscast to win prizes of that caliber. The news is served in variety, first with the national news followed by local (the saksakan sa Tondo and banggaan sa EDSA type) then showbiz. Other news items are injected at convenient junctures, making the audience wait for an “exclusive” item or just tune away to some other program because of irritating teasers.

PLUS Factor: 24 Oras runs the news portion “Good News,” heralding the good deeds of others in an effort to deliver something light and divert from the usual news format. Though the portion has been reporting about cabbies returning their passengers’ dollars and yen, it’s still refreshing to note that there is a spot for the good in the nightly news. Also, anchor Mel Tiangco heads the GMA Kapuso Foundation, which has been actively helping out calamity victims and competing with the rival network’s foundation.

Team kapamilya

Team members: Ted Failon, Korina Sanchez and former VP Noli “Kabayan” de Castro. All three are already established names in the media industry, with Kabayan cementing his political career’s success because of name recall and popularity of his annual Halloween show on Magandang Gabi Bayan. Korina Sanchez made a name for herself via Balitang K then Rated K (not related to K! the 1 Million Peso Videoke Challenge), while Ted Failon rose through the ranks after the expose show Hoy! Gising!.

The service offering: TV Patrol is labeled in Media Studies classes as the “televised tabloid,” acknowledging its pioneering move to inject tabloid-worthy news bits to the newscast, hence affording for it a more “makamasa” appeal. It boasts to be the successor of the country’s first newscast in Filipino, Balita Ngayon, who was then anchored by Mel Tiangco. Compared to 24 Oras, the show delivers its news in blasts, exploring all connected issues and items about a particular news before moving to another one. Also, TV Patrol has been keen lately on explosive exposes, running on items from the illegal drug trade to pedophiles in the Catholic church.

PLUS factor: Aside from dropping their lesser-ranked anchors for Korina and Kabayan, TV Patrol launched in 2007 the Boto Mo Patrol Mo movement which served as a precursor for a more aggressive citizen journalism in the country. People have been able to raise their voices and concerns about pressing matters in the elections, and when the program was later relaunched as Bayan Mo, Patrol Mo, the newscast still became an effective venue for community reportage, though their spam threshold probably needed an upgrade, too.

Team kapatid

Team members: Willie Revillame, noontime’s prodigal son, and Shalani Soledad, councilor of the City of Valenzuela and most likely spared from an eternity with Kris Aquino, if the rumors are true. Hosting the liveliest and most energy-exhausting show on primetime, Willie Revillame returns to TV after having been kept in the frozen goods section by his former mother studio, ABS-CBN. Councilor Soledad meanwhile crosses from news reporting to variety show hosting, though she is yet to discover the difference.

The service offering: Willing Willie is basically a replica of Wowowee (may it rest in peace.), and Willie took the liberty of bringing practically the whole house that comprised the discontinued show with him to his new home. On top of the big-time sponsors (a shampoo for the whole family and a clique of dietary supplements), the parlor games have not changed much, still resounding the format that previous games followed. Shalani is the force that Willing Willie needed to appease and appeal. Her shy but charming personality buys for the show its higher class following, getting viewers from other strata aside from the masa. Cash is easy and the games are too, meaning winning is a piece of cake, though contestants would need sheer luck to make it to the jackpot round.

PLUS factor: Shalani is, by herself, the star of the show, not needing to outshine Willie or be as sexy as the raunchy back-up dancers. People are still way too delighted with her to ditch her for news, so viewers wanting to relieve stress opt to tune in. It’s masa marketing, and Willie is king of that.