...the Asian TV awardees

PH Bags Two Honors At ATA 2012

 

 

By JULIEN MERCED C. MATABUENA

December 8, 2012

Manila Bulletin

 

Korina Sanchez

MANILA, Philippines – Veteran news anchor Korina Sanchez and lifestyle show “Chef vs. Mom” were the Philippine bets that won at the 17th Asian Television Awards (ATA) held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore last Dec. 6.

TV5’s “Chef vs. Mom” won the Best Lifestyle Program award, a Programming category. It bested Singapore’s “Passage to Abu Dhabi,” “Chef On The Road,” and “Lonely Planet Six Degrees China - Episode Shanghai”; India’s “Band Baajaa Bride with Sabyasachi”; and Malaysia’s “Axian Food Adventures (Season 2)” and “Now Everyone Can Fly to New Zealand.”

On the other hand, Sanchez was deemed “Highly Commended” as Best Current Affairs Presenter for her hosting stint on ABS-CBN’s “Rated K - Kwento ng Buhay ko (This is my Life),” but it was India’s Barkha Dutt, host of “We The People with Hillary Clinton,” won in this category.

Aside from the Philippines, Singapore, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, China, and India also took home nods under three umbrella categories of the ATA, namely Programming, Performance, and Technical & Creative.

Last year, the Philippines won the awards for Best Talk Show (ABS-CBN’s “The Bottomline with Boy Abunda”) and Best Theme Song (titled “Ikaw Ang Buhay Ko” for TV5’s “Star Confessions”).

The Philippines clinched 13 nominations in all in this year’s ATA, with the breakdown per network as follows: ABS-CBN with six, GMA-7 and TV5 with three each, and Solar Entertainment (ETC) with one.

The ATAs was launched in 1996 and, according to its official website, it is “the Asian TV industry's most significant and celebrated event, recognizing excellence in programming, production and performance.” The winners in its more than 30 categories are “determined by an expert panel of over 50 judges from across the region," with the results "tabulated and audited by international auditing firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers" and announced during the Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner held every December.