Frontline Pilipinas

Frontline Pilipinas (lit. 'Frontline Philippines') is a Philippine television primetime newscast broadcast by TV5. Originally anchored by Raffy Tulfo and Cheryl Cosim, the program premiered on October 5, 2020, replacing Aksyon. Cosim, Julius Babao and Jiggy Manicad currently serve as the anchors.

Background

The newscast is based on News5's slogan "Nasa Frontline ng mga Balita" (transl. Delivering News from the Frontlines) and "Tapat at tamang pagbabalita para sa may alam at may pakialam" (transl. Honest and correct reporting for those who know and care).

History

2020–2021: Tulfo-Cosim era

Frontline Pilipinas premiered on October 5, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. PHT with Raffy Tulfo and Cheryl Cosim as original anchors, along with News5 chief Luchi Cruz-Valdes, chief correspondent Ed Lingao, and Lourd de Veyra as segment anchors for Deretsahan, NEWS ExplainED, and Word of the Lourd, respectively. The program serves as the replacement to TV5's longest-running flagship newscast Aksyon, which ended abruptly on March 13, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the enforcement of enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, as well as the two One-branded newscasts which aired on TV5. The following week, the program moved to 6:00 p.m. timeslot to give way for the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup and new primetime programming.

On February 15, 2021, athlete and TV host Gretchen Ho joined the newscast as "Sports" segment anchor (alongside The Big Story on One News.) On February 22, 2021, the program extended its running time to one hour and 15 minutes as part of TV5's programming changes.

On April 5, 2021, the program moved to 5:30 p.m. with a shortened one-hour running time to give way for the new shows Sing Galing! and Niña Niño. On July 16, 2021, the show cut its airtime to 30 minutes on Wednesdays and Fridays to give way to the broadcast of the 2021 PBA season.

On September 20, 2021, the newscast moved to an earlier timeslot from 5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. with 1 hour and 15 minutes every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Timeslots for Wednesdays and Fridays remain at 5:15 p.m. and extended to 45 minutes.

Tulfo's departure

On October 1, 2021, Raffy Tulfo bid farewell to the newscast to run for senator in 2022, leaving Cosim as the sole anchor starting October 4.

2022–2024: Cosim-Babao era

Julius Babao was named as Raffy Tulfo's replacement, joining the newscast on February 7, 2022. In conjunction with this, Frontline Pilipinas also debuted its new opening billboard, title card, and graphics. Babao was originally to make his debut on January 17, but was postponed due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases brought by the omicron variant. Ed Lingao took over as interim anchor of the newscast.

Also on the same day, Gretchen Ho took over the anchoring duties for Frontline sa Umaga from Paolo Bediones as he left News5 on February 1 due to the issues surrounding his company, Ei2Tech. The newscast returned to the original 6:30 p.m. timeslot and was extended to 90 minutes on May 22, 2023. In conjunction with this, Frontline Pilipinas also debuted its new opening billboard, title card, and graphics for the second time. Gretchen Ho permanently left the show as a sports presenter to focus on Güd Morning, Kapatid; Mikee Reyes was chosen as her permanent replacement.

2024–present: Cosim-Babao-Manicad era

On January 8, 2024, Jiggy Manicad joined the newscast, becoming its first third main anchor. It also marked his return to journalism, after a nearly six-year hiatus.

Starting June 24, 2024, the program's final 30 minutes were preempted on TV5 and One PH to accommodate Lumuhod Ka Sa Lupa and Gus Abelgas Forensics, respectively. On July 1, it began its simulcast on RPTV.

Newscast editions

Frontline Pilipinas (Primetime edition)

Weeknight main anchors

• Cheryl Cosim (since 2020)
• Julius Babao (since 2022)
• Jiggy Manicad (since 2024)

Segment presenters

• Ed Lingao (since 2020, NEWS ExplainED)
• Lourd de Veyra (since 2020, Word of the Lourd)
• Luchi Cruz-Valdes (since 2020, Diretsahan)
• Marc Logan (since 2024, Kwento 'Sang Minuto ni Marc Logan)
• Jervy "KaladKaren" Li (since 2023, Showbiz Eto Na Nga and K-alaman)
• Mikee Reyes (since 2023, Sports)

Former anchor

• Raffy Tulfo (2020–2021)

Former segment presenter

• Gretchen Ho (2021–2023, Sports)

Segments

• Una Sa Lahat (Intro)
• Abroad (World)
• News ExplainED (Factual)
• Weather
• Showbiz Eto Na Nga! (Entertainment)
• Sports
• Word of the Lourd (Editorial)
• Singko Minuto (Special Report)
• K-Alaman (Trivia)

Frontline sa Umaga (Morning edition)

Frontline sa Umaga (lit. transl. Frontline in the Morning), a morning edition of Frontline Pilipinas, premiered on May 10, 2021, with Paolo Bediones and Marga Vargas as its original anchors. Airing on the network's morning block replacing Aksyon sa Umaga, the program first aired at 6:00 a.m. for 30 minutes from May 10 to October 1, 2021.

On October 4, 2021, the program moved to a new timeslot at 10:50 a.m. and was extended to 45 minutes, filling the vacancy left by Idol in Action; its original timeslot was succeeded by the replays of One PH's Mag-Badyet Tayo! and the 30-minute simulcast of Ted Failon at DJ Chacha sa Radyo5.

On December 24, 2021, Vargas left the newscast and was filled in occasionally by Maricel Halili. On January 17, Bediones left the newscast due to pending lawsuits filed by former employees of Ei2 Technologies, Inc. Halili served as the interim anchor.

On February 7, 2022, Gretchen Ho joined the newscast as the main anchor. On April 18, 2022, the newscast moved to an earlier timeslot, at 10:00 a.m. to give way for Lakwatsika. On January 9, 2023, Jes delos Santos joined the newscast. On May 1, 2023, the newscast began simulcasting on 92.3 Radyo5 True FM. On June 5, 2023, the newscast aired for less than 30 minutes as a result of the network's broadcast of the 2023 NBA Finals. For the same reason, editions for June 2, 8, and 13 were pre-empted.

The morning edition ended its run on June 16, 2023 to give way for Gud Morning Kapatid, where it became a segment still anchored by Delos Santos and Ho. Meanwhile, it was replaced by the replay of Julius at Tintin: Para sa Pamilyang Pilipino on its timeslot on 92.3 Radyo5 True FM. Ho was later replaced by Maoui David to focus on The Big Story. Its run as a segment of Gud Morning Kapatid ended on May 3, 2024 to become a separate lead-in program for the morning show beginning on May 6 at 8:30 a.m., with Delos Santos, Ruth Cabal, and Andrei Felix as anchors. The segment of the said newscast was renamed Frontline sa Umaga Express.

Current anchors

• Jes Delos Santos (since 2023)
• Ruth Cabal (since 2024)
• Andrei Felix (since 2024)

Former anchors

• Paolo Bediones (2021–2022)
• Marga Vargas (2021)
• Maricel Halili (2023)
• Gretchen Ho (2022–2023)
• Maoui David (2023–2024)

Segments

• Una Sa Lahat (Intro)
• Abroad (World)
• Happy News (Features)
• For Today's Video (Trending)
• Showbiz (Entertainment)
• Sports

Frontline Tonight (Late-night edition)

Frontline Tonight, a late-night news edition of Frontline Pilipinas, premiered on September 27, 2021 on the network's TodoMax Primetime Singko evening block. It is anchored by Ed Lingao and Maeanne Los Baños. It is TV5's first flagship late-night newscast since Aksyon Tonite. It is also aired on RPTV on a slightly delayed basis.

Main anchors

• Ed Lingao (since 2021, News ExplainED)
• Maeanne Los Baños (since 2021, Frontline Tonight Special Report)

Substitute anchors

• Andrei Felix (since 2024)
• Nikki de Guzman (since 2024)
• Mon Gualvez (since 2024)
• Ruth Cabal (since 2024)

Segment Presenter

• Jannie Alipo-on (since 2023, Showbiz and Ride Tayo, Jan)

Segments

• Una Sa Lahat (Intro)
• News ExplainED (Factual)
• Fact Checked
• Special Report
• Konteksto (Context)
• Abroad (World)
• Weather
• Frontline Balita (Top Stories)
• Showbiz (Entertainment)
• Sports
• Pampa-Good Night (Features)
• Ride Tayo, Jan (Lifestyle)

Frontline Pilipinas Weekend (Weekend edition)

Frontline Pilipinas Weekend (lit. 'Frontline Philippines Weekend'), a weekend edition of Frontline Pilipinas, premiered on October 14, 2023, on the network's Weekend Trip evening block. It is anchored by Jes Delos Santos, Nikki de Guzman, and Andrei Felix. It is TV5's first flagship weekend newscast since Aksyon Weekend and Pilipinas News Weekend. It is also simulcast on 92.3 Radyo5 True FM, later simulcast on One PH on January 6, 2024, replacing One Balita Weekend.

The Saturday edition premiered on October 14, 2023, while the Sunday edition premiered on November 12, 2023. Delos Santos and De Guzman served as the first anchors of both editions.

In January 2024, along with the launch of TV5's primetime block Weekend Trip, Frontline Pilipinas Weekend updated its news desk. On February 3, 2024, it began airing on RPTV on a delayed basis. Andrei Felix joined the newscast on April 27, 2024 as its third anchor.

Main anchors

• Jes delos Santos (since 2023)
• Nikki de Guzman (since 2023)
• Andrei Felix (since 2024)

Segments

• Una Sa Lahat (Intro)
• Abroad (World)
• Happy Weekend (Features)
• Weather
• Showbiz (Entertainment)
• Sports
• Word of the Lourd (Editorial)

Frontline Express (Afternoon edition)

Frontline Express, an afternoon edition of Frontline Pilipinas, premiered on April 8, 2024 on the network's Hapon Champion afternoon block replacing Wanted sa Radyo. It is anchored by Ruth Cabal. It is TV5's first flagship afternoon newscast since Aksyon sa Tanghali.

Anchor

• Ruth Cabal (since 2024)

Segments

• Showbiz Express
• Sports Express
• Frontline Pilipinas Mamaya

News5 Alerts

News5 Alerts is an hourly news bulletin of TV5 that premiered on October 5, 2020, replacing Aksyon Alerts.

Presenters

• Nikki de Guzman (Weekends)

Former presenters

• Mariceli Halili (2020–2023, Weekdays)
• Ed Lingao (2020–2021, Weekdays)
• Mae Anne Los Baños (2020–2021, Weekdays)
• Cherry Bayle (2022–2023, Weekdays)
• Maoui David (2023–2024, Weekdays)

Accolades

Frontline Pilipinas received nominations for Best News Program and Best Female Newscaster (Cosim) at the 35th PMPC Star Awards for Television.

References

External links

• Official website