As the whole world faces the COVID-19 pandemic, “The Happinews Project” is ready to spread happiness and positive vibes among Filipinos through uplifting stories in the new online show, “Happinews+” on Facebook, hosted by Gretchen Ho.
The first three episodes, which featured award-winning advertising executive and current ABS-CBN creative communications management head Robert Labayen, happiness guru Bryson Bonsol, and seamstress Rhoda Quintos, were posted on “The Happinews Project” Facebook group and the ABS-CBN News Facebook page early this month.
Bryson provided advice on how to be happy and stress-free during this crisis in the first episode, Robert, the creative genius behind ABS-CBN’s well-loved Christmas and summer station IDs, gave his thoughts on “finding balance in the new normal,” while Nanay Rhoda shared why she decided to make face masks using scrap aircon filters for COVID-19 frontliners. Star Magic singer and actor Marlo Mortel also offered a special performance from his new collection of songs, “Love On Lockdown Originals.”
This weekend, “Happinews+” will be putting the spotlight on today’s modern heroes, our COVID-19 frontliners. On Saturday (May 16), Gretchen and the panelists will be with Mary Cris Saracanlao, a registered nurse who is now recovering from the disease, followed by active youth member and volunteer fireman Dale Abugadie on Sunday (May 17). To start the week right, the “Happinews” crew will also be talking to Dr. Greville Galindon II on Monday (May 18) about his advocacy of educating people about COVID-19 while also providing free online medical consultation to those who can’t go outside due to the community quarantine.
The episodes will first be shared on the ABS-CBN News Facebook page at 9 am and then posted on the Happinews Facebook page at 4 pm.
According to Gretchen, the show aims to spread positivity and help people cope with anxieties brought about by the pandemic with discussions on relevant topics such as mental health, career exploration, and survival tips.
“We must give a balance of good news, together with all the tragic news that has been going around. It’s important to share these to give people a sense of hope. It’s important to showcase human resiliency, creativity, and just all the love that is going around. We will never be short of good things to feature if only we take a closer look,” she said.
Taking her role as “Happinews” ambassador to heart, Gretchen said she has devoted her entire social media platform as a safe space for providing happy news, from sharing light-hearted content to posting inspiring stories on her newly-launched website www.womaninaction.ph. She also writes heartwarming and feel-good stories for “The Happinews Project” for airing on “TV Patrol.”
The initiative of ABS-CBN Integrated News and Current Affairs started out as a Facebook group in 2018 where it already has thousands of members exchanging fun and inspiring stories. It also launched a university tour in the country’s top campuses, offering students motivational talks and promoting responsible use of social media with resource speakers including ABS-CBN journalist Jacque Manabat and celebrities Bela Padilla and Alex Gonzaga.
Join the online kwentuhan with Gretchen and stay tuned for new episodes on the “The Happinews Project” Facebook group. To get the latest news, follow @ABSCBNNews on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram or visit news.abs-cbn.com. For updates, follow @ABSCBNPR on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram or visit news.abs-cbn.com/newsroom.
