BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Media messages in television are powerful because they are reproduced through imagery, thus, TV is the best medium for commercialism. Crazy for You is a good venue for media to exhibit the lifestyle one could aim or work for in life. It shows the poor that they could join games of luck to improve their financial standing, it shows the balikbayans how and where they could happily share their blessings, and it shows the middle-class the latest trends so they can keep up with the rest of society.
In a good number of Filipino families nowadays, the children leave to work offshore as soon as one is already capable of working abroad to take on the role of being the breadwinner, or to help the family stay afloat financially. Crazy for You shows the intricacies of the lives of modern Filipino families where the eldest child of former OFWs take on the role of being the breadwinner by working offshore. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) statistics show that there were 48,089 more Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in 2005 than in 2004 (Source: http://www.poea.gov.ph/stats/2005deploment.xls). As for the media, the ABS-CBN news magazine program, The Correspondents, also tackled the lives of OFWs in the episodes Lebanon Diaries ng mg Pinoy, Teknolohiya at Buhay-DH sa Hong Kong, Mga Kwentong Pinoy sa Germany, Kapalaran ng mga Traini-yuki sa Japan. In Crazy for You,
ABS-CBN tries to show how OFWs live as domestic helpers and foreign students in Barcelona, Spain and the issues they face when they return to the Philippines.
In a manner of speaking, Crazy for You was patterned after the koreanovela Lovers in Paris and Only You (Source: http://beta.abs-cbn.com/tabid/71/xmmid/387/Article/1673/program/c4u/xmview/2/Default.aspx) as the lead characters were foreigners in the setting, that is, Filipinos in Barcelona, Spain; Koreans in Paris, France; and in Italy, respectively. Due to this fact, part of Crazy for You showed the main characters sightseeing and enjoying the outdoors, while they were in Barcelona and Ibiza, Spain. In addition to being primarily love stories, all series are not heavy drama anthologies but have light touches of comedy.
In his September 15, 2006 column at the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Nestor Torre reviewed the first three telecasts of Crazy for You. He wrote,
Most of its first telecasts’ scenes focused exclusively on its Filipino characters, so they ended up appearing to live in a cultural vacuum. Manzano does well in the show, but Gonzaga and Pokwang are too ditzy and flighty, acting up a storm for ostensible comic effect. On the brighter side, the new show’s visuals are agreeably perky and varied, so the eye is entertained. (Source: http://showbizandstyle.inq7.net/entertainment/entertainment/view_article.php?article_id=21254)
In real life, Toni Gonzaga, who portrays Janice, the female lead character, is currently
22 years old and Luis Manzano, the male lead character (Wacky) is 26 years old. In the series, Janice, at that age, is tasked with being the breadwinner of the family. This setting actually happens in the modern Filipino family. The most recent National Statistics Office report showed that the most number of OFWs who left in 2004 belong to the age bracket 25-29 (Source: http://www.census.gov.ph/data/sectordata/2005/of0402.htm). This clearly demonstrates that between the ages 25 to 29, Filipinos are already tasked with providing for the family. This is the new face of the Filipino family.
I remember that when I belonged to that age group I was starting to earn enough to afford small luxuries on top of my financial obligations. I have always enjoyed watching television and the advertisements shown keep me updated on the latest products out on the market. In fact, there are times when I keep the television on but watch commercials only.
Relevance of the Study
I haven’t read any recent Social Studies textbooks lately but when I was in grade school and high school, the school books I read then stated that the father is the provider of the family. It is the father who works hard so that the family can have all the necessities of everyday life and even the luxuries enjoyed by all. I also remember that back then, at least in the families I knew of, the working son or daughter is expected or even obliged to help financially, but not to the extent of being the breadwinner.
However, in Filipino families nowadays, the parents work hard so they can send their children to college, in most cases, nursing schools. They know that after passing the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) and the National Council Licensure Exam for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN), their children will work abroad and be able to finance the entire household’s needs. For the parents who cannot afford to send their children to nursing schools as money is a concern, they work abroad by being domestic helpers.
I could also say that on top of providing the basic necessities such as education and food, OFWs also want their kin to keep up with the latest trends, be it in fashion or gadgets, among other things. In the teleserye, Globe’s services were incorporated in the story, e.g., Melba’s cell phone was a load wallet, Roger was a Globe in-house agent, and a number of characters used cell phones with video conferencing. Other commercials promote vanity so an individual will be accepted in the society, ultimately. Media is powerful because it has wide reach. In television, media messages are reproduced through imagery. It is seen everywhere.
Delimitations of the Study
This paper will review the commercialism in the October 25 episode where Janice was hired as a hotel receptionist by day and as a call center agent by night, and the November 9 episode where Janice joined Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong. It is interesting to note that Crazy for You is aired in ABS-CBN yet most articles written about it are published in the broadsheet Inquirer, which is a partner company of the GMA Network, ABS-CBN’s rival.
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
In the study Modeling Consumption via Parasocial Interactions with Television Soap Characters (Source: http://www.business.rutgers.edu/default.aspx?id=924), Cristell Russell and Barbara Stern tested a model of the influence of television soap opera characters on viewers’ consumption attitudes and behaviors. They showed the soap opera character’s effect on consumption behaviors both directly and indirectly towards the characters’ consumption.
The paper Telenovelas and Soap in Latin America (Source: http://www.zonalatina.com/Zldata131.htm) by Zona Latina proved that the telenovela is an effective advertising vehicle for laundry detergents and other household cleaning products. It concentrated on the commercial aspects of telenovelas and pointed out that they have been instrumental in developing a “national” identity for Latin America countries in terms of self-definition, as well.
This paper will prove that advertisements in the program Crazy for You show us the good life many of us aim for. Crazy for You commercials exhibit that the ideal lifestyle is one where we, as consumers, can keep up with the trends and the rest of society.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
In the book Writing the Nation/Pag-akda ng Bansa, Bienvenido Lumbera said, “The student of the arts has to look beyond plain artistic production. It is imperative that one investigates the society in which artistic production takes place, noting how social, political, and economic forces contend for hegemony within that society. The student ought to take into account the multifarious factors that influence the production of any art work, because he needs an all-around understanding of what the Filipino artist wants when he undertakes creative work and what the Filipino audiences expect from a given work of art.”
Lumbera’s perspective asserts that media content should have social relevance. It should reflect how the dominant classes protect their standing, ways and means. In essence, the role of media is to awaken the people’s awareness as to the condition people influence and interact with one another. As stated, this paper will attest to the fact that even so-called teleserye, which the unsuspecting masses view as pure entertainment is actually a reflection of the existing state of affairs between mass media and the people who view them.
SUMMARY OF THE STORY
Crazy for You was originally about the lives of OFWs in Barcelona, Spain. Janice, is a young woman who works as a day-hire maid to help out her family in the Philippines. Wacky is a student who is the son of former OFWs in Spain. Janice worked for Wacky but never saw him because he was always out whenever she was in. They finally meet at a party and was instantly attracted to each other. Somewhere along the way, Wacky got involved with Sabrina who, later on, couldn’t accept his rejection of her. Ultimately, Sabrina tells the Spanish government about Janice who is an overstaying domestic helper. This led to the deportation of Janice back to Manila.
When Janice went home, she discovered that her father needed an operation that required a big amount of money. Part of what she did to secure the money was to join Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong. Later on in the story, Melba, Janice’s mother, earned her part of her income through subscribing with Globe’s e-load while her father, Roger, was a full-time Globe in-house agent
As the story progressed, Wacky came back to the Philippines to be with Janice. After resolving their problems in the past, they reconciled. As Wacky and Janice got to know each other’s families, they were misled to believe that they have the same biological father.
Standard Presentation of the Series
Each time the series and the gaps start, the title shot is flashed to signal the beginning. Then a recap of the highlights of the past day is shown. There are 5 gaps every night. After the last scene, the Department of Labor standard note that minor actors/actresses secured the necessary working permit is shown. This is followed by teasers of the following episode.
GENERAL REVIEW OF THE TELESERYE’S CELL PHONE SERVICE PROVIDER COMMERCIALS
It is apparent that the major sponsor of Crazy for You is Globe Telecoms. Globe is part of the daily lives of Roger and Melba. Roger is a Globe in-house agent while Melba’s cell phone is a load wallet. Luna and Brix talk to each other using Globe’s video conference services. In one episode, a young man who is one of their neighbors, as evidenced through addressing Janice’s mother as Aling Melba, came and loaded P40.00. Melba was quietly sitting down in their house’s porch, writing on a notebook and wearing house clothes. As the young man was about to leave, he found a one-peso coin and asked Melba if it were possible to load just P1.00. Melba was happy to accommodate his request.
This is a direct promotion of the benefits of being a load wallet. Melba used to be a barangay council so people in the vicinity know her. In the past, people were used to coming to their homes to air their concerns. They were already comfortable talking to her. It was natural for people to go to her home albeit a different purpose.
The Globe commercial is also the first shown after each gap. It has four stories, a man telling his older brother that his wedding will not push through, a brother giving encouragement to his sister, the CPA board passer telling his father, and the new mother telling a grandmother about the newest member of the family. As it is incorporated within the story and is repeated 4 to 5 times in the duration of the teleserye, it is telling me that I need Globe services if I want instant access to communication technologies.
The commercials and the manner Globe services are incorporated in the story make it seem that one does not need to think twice about the amount that will be deducted in one’s cell phone load to avail of Globe services such as voice call and video conference. It is as if it were saying that we need these services to keep in touch with the people we care about.
The irony of Crazy for You advertisements is that they also include Sun Cellular, Smart Communications, and Touch Mobile which are in direct competition with Globe Telecomms. Call me old-fashioned by even big-name stars like Kris Aquino and Aga Muhlach have many endorsements but never of the same kind. For example, Kris Aquino endorses San-san cosmetic products exclusively, Pantene hair products and no other hair product brands, San Miguel Beer products and no other alcoholic drinks. The same is true for Aga Muhlach, Quaker Oatmeals and no other breakfast products, Jollibee and no other food chains, Selecta ice cream and no other ice creams. If they could impose exclusive contracts on celebrity endorsements, maybe TV network executives could figure out a way for one kind of product shown per TV show. All talents in the show do not endorse any cellular phone service provider so there is no point in arguing about it. However, I suppose that this wishful thinking is also shooting for the moon as TV commercials boil down to profit for the network. As presented, in cell phone service providers’ endorsement case, this could mean Crazy for You losing contracts from Sun Cellular, Smart Communications and Touch Mobile.
Review of the October 25 episode
I will focus on the commercialism of working in a call center in the Philippines. In this episode, Janice and Blessy searched for jobs. Janice was lucky to secure two jobs, as a hotel receptionist and as a call center agent. The ease of getting a job as a call center agent and the competitive pay an agent gets upon hiring are common knowledge. To say that their lifestyle is better than most in terms of the brands they use and the overseas travels they enjoy, among others, is a cliché. These are the reasons most college students aim for a job in a call center no matter what course they are taking up. In addition, even professionals who have long work experiences resign and apply as call center agents because the pay is better (Source: http://www.livinginthephilippines.com/call_centers.html).
In my former office, a colleague of mine had a disagreement with his immediate supervisor. When it ended, he filed a resignation letter and left in his anger. We, his concerned friends asked how he would earn his keep. The following week, he informed us that he was hired as a call center agent after a day of application.
In the Philippines, English is the medium of instruction in the classrooms. When I go to night spots with friends, English is the language used by most people everywhere. My freshman high school cousin and his classmates who study at DLS-Zobel are all English-speaking.
I remember back in 2003, a good number of call center companies participated in the DLSU Job Expo. I asked the people who manned the booths why this is so and they told me that Lasallians are at ease speaking in English.
The flourish of the call center industry in the Philippines intensifies the hegemony within the society. If a person speaks English well, s/he is admired. I am awed by a Filipino who speaks with an American and/or British accent. On the other hand, persons who have a hard time speaking English develop inferiority complex because s/he feels that his/her views are not good enough and will be eventually be looked down though they are brilliant because s/he doesn’t know how to express himself/herself well.
Review of the November 9 episode
In the November 9 episode, it was shown that Roger was struggling to decide between robbing the cash register of the company where he works for or not because the family needed a big amount of cash immediately. Eventually, he decides against it. Meanwhile, Janice and Blessy were watching TV and saw the Pera o Bayong portion of the program Wowowee. They decided to join the game as they were watching it. Before they went to the TV studio, they discussed how far they should go in the game. They were still discussing it while they were on their way to the studio to join the game. They agreed that no matter what happens, they would choose the bayong hoping that it would contain the P1,000,000.00 jackpot. They also talked about a backup plan where they would only choose pera when it reached P100,000.00.
In the actual game, Janice was lucky enough to successfully outsmart the other contestants in the elimination round. In the final round, Janice chose the bayong though the P100,000.00 amount was offered. She ended up with the P20,000.00 consolation price. All throughout the game, the only emotion showed on Janice’s face was hopeful desperation. As Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong still runs on TV, this is also part of the commercialism of the show.
The tie-up between Crazy for You and Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong is inevitable. Janice, Blessy, Paolo, Melba, Roger, Gigi and Eduardo were formerly OFW. In Wowowee there is a portion where balikbayans donate dollar bills that are collected in a basket passed around during the show. Who can forget the Wowowee tragedy where 73 people died, many of whom are women and elderly, some of whom lined up outside the studio for as long as 3 days? (Source: http://www.pcij.org/blog/?p=584).
In an interview, the show’s host, Willie Revillame, mentioned that Wowowee was envisioned to be a source of hope and money for the poor (Source: http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.php?index=1&story_id=65166). In the same article, ABS-CBN’s Vice-President for Entertainment Charo Santos-Concio was asked to react on the issue that the show encouraged mendicancy and dependency on dole outs. She replied by saying,
“The reality today is that there are plenty among our countrymen who are poor,” she said in Filipino. “We only want to give them hope. We're all human, and I think most of us have tried our luck in games of chance. But we are not encouraging mendicancy.”
I suppose, in the minds of the ABS-CBN management, this is the modern version of the bayanihan in the city. Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong provides the needier the venue to count on luck, on occasion, to improve their financial standing. They can always depend on the generosity of the people who enjoy watching Wowowee abroad when they come home to the Philippines. Also, as the sponsors are balikbayans, it is as if the game is saying that one could only afford giving to the needier if one worked abroad. It is as if the teleserye is saying that the status in life of the needier members of our society will not improve because they do not have the capacity to leave the country.
As previously mentioned, Janice’s hopeful desperation is reflective of the general sentiment of the Filipino masses. I suppose if I were as poor as the contestants who join the various Wowowee games, I would be awed by what I would see inside the studio, the well-lit air-conditioned room filled with people who speak well, people who dress well, people who are smart, people who can face anybody at any given time. From the poor’s perspective, their lack would only be emphasized by the things they would see inside the studio.
I suppose if I were as poor as the studio contestants, I would be nervously waiting for my turn to join a game. If I were already participating in the game, I would be as desperate, add this to being star-struck in the face of Willie Revillame, if I were as poor as the contestants. I suppose I would be happy only after the game I joined is over, if I took home even a small amount of money. On the other hand, I would be sad if I weren’t able to get back even the fare I spent in going to the studio. I suppose if I was already at home, dealing with the problems I deal with everyday, my hopeful desperation would only turn into desperation as I was able to experience a few hours inside Wowowee’s studio.
Others might think that Wowowee bridges the gap between the rich and the poor but what it really does it promote the status quo. The well-to-do members of the society are somehow being shown that if you have blessings to share, Wowowee is the venue where you could enjoy departing with your money. Of course, you can only “donate” to Wowowee if you have enough spare cash. So the mentality that is being perpetuated for balikbayans is to work hard abroad so they can help needier Filipinos.
CONCLUSION
As Lumbera said, “It is imperative that one investigates the society in which artistic production takes place, noting how social, political and economic forces contend for hegemony within that society. The student of the arts has to look beyond plain artistic production.”
The integration of Globe services within the story shows what one can do to preserve one's status in life. The teleserye Crazy for You reflected what is happening in the society. In a growing number of Filipino families, members search for the proverbial greener pasture abroad. Commercialism is not exclusively found in the advertisements between the show’s gaps but was incorporated within the story. In the October 25 episode, Janice joined Wowowee’s Pera o Bayong to show that the needier members of the society can depend on luck and the money donated by the balikbayans. However, though Globe Telecomms is a major endorser in the TV series, they cannot even ask the network management to block out all other cell phone service providers. Commercial product managers draw exclusive contracts with their celebrity endorses but this is not applicable with TV networks. This would mean direct losses from them if they imposed one kind of product per TV show.
The commercialism in Crazy for You exhibits the lifestyle one could aim or work for in life. It shows the poor that they could join games of luck to improve their financial standing, it shows the balikbayans how and where they could happily share their blessings, and it shows the middle-class the latest trends so they can keep up with the rest of society. Crazy for You is a good venue for media to exhibit the lifestyle one could aim or work for in life. Media messages in television are powerful because they are reproduced through imagery, thus, TV is the best medium for commercialism.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Book
Lumbera, Bienvenido. Writing the Nation/Pag-akda ng Bansa. Quezon City: University of the Philippines, 2000.
Theses
Russell, Cristel and Barbara Stern. “Modeling Consumption via Parasocial Interactions with Television Soap.” 10 August 2005
Brava, Muñeca. “Telenovelas and Soap in Latin America.”
Online Sources
ABS-CBN Interactive. ABS-CBN. December 7, 2006
Inq7.net. Inquirer. December 7, 2006
“Call Center in the Philippines.” Living in the Philippines. 07 December 2006
“Deployed Landbased Overseas Filipino Workers by Destination (New hires and Rehires)” Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). 06 November 2006.
“Wowowee: A Filipino Tragedy.” Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. 04 February 2006 < p="584">.
“2004 Survey on Overseas Filipinos Table.” National Statistics Office (NSO). 15 April 2005.
1 comment:
Keep up the good work.
Post a Comment