By Marron Joshua F. Mendoza
Loyal viewers of ABS-CBN’s noontime variety show It’s Showtime started an online campaign on Monday called #ExtendShowtimeAirtime, demanding TV5 to extend the program’s airtime on the network.
While fans, known as “Madlang People,” are grateful for the Kapatid network for broadcasting It’s Showtime to a broader audience, they were disappointed after noticing that some of the show’s segments looked rushed. The network also unexpectedly cut off the show’s live feed at 3:00 p.m. to air the classic 90s Mexican telenovela María la del Barrio.
Fans say It’s Showtime deserves a longer broadcast time on the network, with some proposing to move the show from 12:45 p.m. to its original noon time slot. They added that Tropang LOL, another variety show that preceded the program, should be either moved to an earlier time or canceled altogether.
“Seeing how complicated and in a rush they were last Saturday due to the very little time they were given, #ExtendShowtimeAirtime. They can do so much more only if they were given the chance to. They can achieve their excellent concepts and ideas,” one netizen said.
“@itsShowtimeNa deserves better! The staff, the host, and the show itself deserves better! They don’t deserve to be cut! They don’t deserve the late time slot! They deserve longer airtime,” another netizen said.
It’s Showtime started airing on the Kapatid network on Saturday, July 16, with the return of a live studio audience, making it the first Philippine variety show to do so since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. It adds to the continuing list of ABS-CBN-produced programs broadcast on TV5 since the Kapamilya network’s shutdown in 2020.
It’s Showtime is also simulcast on Kapamilya Channel, A2Z, Kapamilya Online Live, and Jeepney TV.
