ABS-CBN Careers,. ABS-CBN 60 Years AVP (FIN). 2014. Web. 1 Nov. 2016.
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Eugenio H. Lopez Sr., also known as Don Eñing, studied in Ateneo de Manila then took up law in University of the Philippines. Later on, he went to Harvard University for his masters in law. After he finished studying, he returned to Manila and started a career in business. In 1928, Eñing Lopez along with his brother Fernando founded E and F Enterprises in Iloilo. In his late twenties, he put up the first crusading newspaper in Iloilo called El Tiempo. By the time he was 31, he organized Iloilo-Negros Air Express Company or INAEC; the first airline in the Philippines and in Asia. In 1957, Eñing Lopez became the president of Chronicle Broadcasting Network (CBN). Lopez bought Alto Broadcasting System (ABS) a year later making him the founder of ABS-CBN. In 1961, he bought Meralco from its American owners. He became the country’s tri-media -- newspapers, television stations, and radio from ABS-CBN Broadcasting to the Manila Chronicle.
In 1961, Jake Almeda Lopez joined the Lopez Group and became the head of ABS-CBN's personnel division. He led the company's name change from Bolinao Electronics ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation to ABS-CBN Broadcast Center in 1967. Geny complimented Almeda Lopez as the "soul" of ABS-CBN
Judge Antonio “Tony” Quirino is the younger brother of the 6th President of the Philippines, Elpidio Quirino. He was the owner of Alto Broadcasting System (ABS). According to Gomez, alto was derived from his wife’s name, Aleli de Guzman, “Al” and his name, Antonio Quirino, “To”. He partnered up with Lindenberg in 1952 and established DZAQ-TV (Channel 3). The first Philippine television channel name were also in his initials, AQ. The first television broadcast was a garden party held in his own house however the company has a slow start since many Filipino households still did not have television sets during that time. Initially, Quirino used television for political gain for his older brother’s re-election. However Elpidio Quirino lost to Ramon Magsaysay in the 1953 presidential elections. Lindenberg and A. Quirino continued pursuing Philippine television however due to lack of resource which hindered them from growing as a company, they sold ABS to Don Eugenio Lopez Sr. owner of Chronicle Broadcasting Network (CBN). Thus the two companies merged together and formed one the most well-known television network of the country, ABS-CBN (Mangabat 96).
Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Bowdoin College and a Masters degree in Business Administration from the Harvard Business School in 1980. He took the rein to become ABS-CBN's chairman and CEO in 1997. He was also the Vice Chairman of Lopez Holdings Corporation and the Director of First Gen Corporation, First Philippine Holdings, and Sky Vision Corporation.
Eugenio “Geny” Lopez Jr., also known as “Kapitan”, is the son of Eugenio Lopez Sr. and the father of Eugenio Lopez III. His educational background includes earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from Virginia Military Institute and a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard School of Business. He also studied in San Beda and Ateneo de Manila University. This Iloilo native was one of the pioneers of Philippine television and one of his accomplishments include establishing the first broadcast center in Asia. When he returned to the Philippines after being exiled in the United States during Martial Law however he was faced with a lot of obstacles in re-establishing ABS-CBN. According to Mangabat, “Geny was determined to rebuild this media empire and restore it to its former glory” (96). In less than a year ABS-CBN was able to get back on its feet in 1986. He also conceived the 1988 slogan of ABS-CBN which was “In the service of the Filipino.” Unfortunately, Geny Lopez passed away in 1999 due to cancer however his legacy lives on in the homes of the Filipino people (Brazil).
Rosario Santos-Concio is from Calapan, Mindoro. Commonly known as Charo Santos, her educational background includes graduating cum laude with a Communication Arts degree from St. Paul College and also fulfilling the Advanced Management Program at Harvard University in 2007. After being the President of ABS-CBN for seven years and Chief Executive Officer for 2 years, she is now a board member of ABS-CBN corporation, Chief Content Officer and President of ABS-CBN University (Unson 94). Prior to becoming part of the executive board of the company, Santos-Concio first made a mark in acting. She starred in over 30 films and even won Best Actress in the 1977 Asian Film Festival for her role in Mike de Leon’s “Itim”. After starring in numerous films, she decided to go behind the camera. She is responsible for notable Philippine TV shows such as “Home Along da Riles” and “Maalaala Mo Kaya”. In 2016, Santos-Concio went back to acting and took part in Lav Diaz’s “Ang Babaeng Humayo” also known as “The Woman Who Left”. Santos-Concio gained a lot of praise for her role and the film received the Golden Lion Award in the Venice Film Festival (Ang).
James Lindenberg is a Jewish-American born electronic engineer who married a Filipina from Balinao, Pangasinan. In 1946, he established the Balinao Electronic Corporation (BEC) which produced and provided equipment for radio broadcasting in the Philippines. Lidenberg had an idea that is was time to for the country to shift to television and because of that he was dubbed as “The Father of Philippine Television”. During 1952, he became business partners with Antonio Quirino who was the owner of Alto Broadcasting System. Together, they opened DZAQ-TV and on October 23, 1953 they aired their first full broadcast which was a garden party held in Quirino’s house (Mangabat 93).
Fernando Lopez is the younger brother of Eugenio "Eñing" Lopez Sr. and the co-founder of ABS-CBN. He managed a chain of Lopez enterprises such as Iloilo College, INAEC, the Manila Chronicle, and more. In 1945, former President Osmeña made Lopez the mayor of Iloilo City. His political career did not end there. He became the vice president and served as a secretary of agriculture and natural resources under former President Ferdinand Marcos. However, he resigned in 1971 due to the disagreements between his brother Eugenio and President Marcos.
Media was under the control of the Philippine state after Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law in 1973. His first instruction under martial law was to identify mass media personnel critical of his totalitarian administration as ‘enemies of the state’. In addition, TV companies were turnover to oligarch sympathetic for Marcos’ vision of ‘The New Society’ (Tay, Turner, 149). Marcos’ opposition leader, Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr, was assassinated in 1983 which led the “alternative media” to stir the critical mass to overthrow Marcos in 1986. (Otmazgin, Ben-Ari, 151) Thereafter, mass-oriented television stations, ABS-CBN and rival GMA were involved in a ‘ratings war’ wherein their programs compete against each other to attract and cultivate loyalty among masa viewers.
The Lopez family used their newspaper company, The Manila Chronicle, as a medium to criticised the government led by President Ferdinand Marcos. Thus began the rivalry between the Lopezes and the Marcoses (Brazil). The press company was shut down and ABS-CBN was taken over by the government. In 1972, after the declaration of Martial Law, Eugenio “Geny” Lopez and Sergio Osmena III was arrested by then President Ferdinand Marcos. They both decided to go on a 10-day hunger strike while in prison as a protest of their punishment in 1974 (Lopez). In Lopez words: I am going on this hunger strike to focus attention on the plight and suffering thousands of detainees like me. I am innocent but under the circumstances, I cannot expect a fair hearing under the military tribunal or the civil courts. I will fast until i’m released. If my plea for justice is not headed, I am ready to die. All verdicts of military tribunals are subject to review and final approval by the president. He himself ordered my arrest and would therefore be complainant, prosecutor and judge all at the same time (qtd. in Eskapo). Even though the hunger strike gained media attention, the plan backfired. Both Lopez and Osmena were not only denied of their freedom but were also accused of conspiring to assassinate President Marcos (Lopez). After five years in prison, Geny Lopez and Sergio Osmena III made a bold move and decided to escape from the prison. The two escaped from Fort Bonifacio with the help of Geny Lopez’ family, Jake Almeda Lopez, Gabby Lopez and Raffy Lopez. Despite a few lapses, their elaborate plan was successful and together they flew to the United States via private airplane. In addition, their escape re-told in a movie titled “Eskapo” directed by Chito Roño. |