Mario Teodoro "Ted" Failon Etong (; born March 29, 1962) is a Filipino broadcast journalist and former politician. He served as a representative of the 1st district of

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

from 2001 to 2004. A broadcast journalist previously for

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...

, he previously presented news for ''Radyo Patrol Balita Alas-Siyete'' alongside Noli de Castro, and on his own program ''Failon Ngayon sa DZMM''. He also presented '' Hoy Gising!'', the nightly news program ''

TV Patrol ''TV Patrol'' is a Philippine television news broadcasting show broadcast by ABS-CBN, Kapamilya Channel, A2Z and All TV. Originally anchored by Noli de Castro, Mel Tiangco and Robert Arevalo, it premiered on March 2, 1987, on the netw ...

'' (formerly ''TV Patrol World'') from 2004 to 2020, and his own investigative program '' Failon Ngayon'' on television.

Early life and education

Failon was born on March 29, 1962, to Jose Carson Etong, a

jeepney A jeepney (), or simply a jeep (), is a type of Public transport, public utility vehicle (PUV) that serves as the most popular means of Transportation in the Philippines, public transportation in the Philippines. Known for its crowded seating ...

driver, and Josefina Quibilan Failon, a market vendor. Failon completed his elementary education at Sacred Heart High School in Tacloban in 1974. As a high school student, he worked as a room boy in Tacloban, a waiter, and a construction worker to help his family make ends meet. He completed his secondary education at Perpetual Help College of Rizal in Las Piñas in 1979. He later studied economics at

Colegio de San Juan de Letran The Colegio de San Juan de Letran (), also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers in Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. I ...

, during which he worked as a

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

(DJ), before transferring to Divine Word University to study mass communication. However, he did not complete his studies at either institution, as he also left school upon marriage in 1985. Failon finally graduated in 1996, earning his broadcast communication degree at the

Polytechnic University of the Philippines The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP; ) is a public, coeducational, research university in Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines. It was founded on 19 October 1904, as the Manila Business School (MBS) and as part of Manila's public sch ...

. He also pursued

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

at the Arellano Law Foundation but did not finish the program.

Career

Failon worked for DYPL-AM, based in

Tacloban Tacloban ( ; ), officially the City of Tacloban (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city on Leyte island in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, Tacloban has a popu ...

, as a driver and reporter in 1982, announcer and production head from 1983 to 1987, and station manager from 1987 to 1988. He later moved to

Angeles City Angeles (), officially the City of Angeles (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 462,928 people. A ...

, where he became the program director of DWGV-FM from 1988 to 1990. Failon joined ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation in 1990 as a news desk editor. He later became a radio anchor for DZMM-AM and

ABS-CBN News ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs, known on-air as ABS-CBN News (formerly known as ''ABS-CBN News and Public Affairs''), is the news and current affairs division of the Philippine media conglomerate ABS-CBN Corporation. The division is the coun ...

' executive producer and anchor. He later became the host and executive producer of the morning television show ''Hoy Gising''. He became the radio news manager for DZMM in 1995. Although he had entered politics as representative of the 1st district of

from 2001 to 2004, he continued at ABS-CBN as a part-time DZMM anchor and host of ''Good News'' on ANC. After his congressional term, he returned as a full-time journalist for ABS-CBN as a DZMM anchor. He was named as anchor of the revamped ''TV Patrol World'' (now ''

'') in 2004. He later became the host of his own investigative program '' Failon Ngayon'' in 2009. On August 30, 2020, ABS-CBN management confirmed that Failon decided to part ways with the network. He made his final appearance on ''TV Patrol'' and ''Failon Ngayon sa TeleRadyo'' on August 31. Failon signed with TV5 on September 11, 2020. He later became the host of ''Ted Failon at DJ Chacha sa Radyo5'' (now True FM) alongside Czarina Marie Guevara (widely known as DJ Chacha, also previously from ABS-CBN) on Radyo5 92.3 News FM (later 105.9 True FM effective November 2024). He and Guevara later became the hosts of '' Gud Morning Kapatid'' on TV5 and RPTV, where they appear for the hook up with the radio program's newscast segment.

Personal life

Failon married Trinidad Arteche in 1985. The couple had two daughters: Kaye (born 1985) and Karishma (born 1996). In 2009, his wife, aged 44, committed suicide in their family residence in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

Investigation

In May 2009, the DOJ's Quezon City prosecutors’ office dismissed the Quezon City Police District criminal

complaint In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of action) that the filing party or parties (the plaintiff(s)) believes are sufficient to support a claim against the party ...

for

obstruction of justice In United States jurisdictions, obstruction of justice refers to a number of offenses that involve unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investiga ...

against Failon, his driver, houseboy, nanny, housemaid and Trinidad’s sister Pamela Arteche. Earlier, Failon underwent

criminal investigation Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A complete criminal investigation can include Search and seizure, searching, interviews, interrogations, Evidence (law), ...

in Camp Karingal. The NBI found Trinidad Arteche-Etong committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

. It sustained Failon's allegations that she committed suicide due to financial problems. The NBI's Neuro Psychiatric Section's psychological autopsy found Trinidad suffered constant

insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder where people have difficulty sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep for as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low ene ...

with

major depressive disorder Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive depression (mood), low mood, low self-esteem, and anhedonia, loss of interest or pleasure in normally ...

. She suffered

gunshot wound A gunshot wound (GSW) is a penetrating injury caused by a projectile (e.g. a bullet) shot from a gun (typically a firearm). Damage may include bleeding, bone fractures, organ damage, wound infection, and loss of the ability to move part of ...

inside a

bathroom A bathroom is a room in which people wash their bodies or parts thereof. It can contain one or more of the following plumbing fixtures: a shower, a bathtub, a bidet, and a sink (also known as a wash basin in the United Kingdom). A toilet is al ...

of their house on No. 27 General Aquino Street, Tierra Pura Homes in Tandang Sora, Culiat,

in April 15 and died at the New Era General Hospital. In September 2011, an Information was filed against 5 Quezon City police officers with Judge Marie Christine Jacob, Quezon City Regional Trial Court, Branch 100 for violation of Section 2 (b), R.A. 7438. In March 2016, in a 22-page joint decision, Judge Genie Gapas-Agbada of the

Regional Trial Court Branch 100

acquitted In common law jurisdictions, an acquittal means that the criminal prosecution has failed to prove that the accused is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charge presented. It certifies that the accused is free from the charge of an o ...

Quezon City Police District’s CIDU Senior Superintendent Franklin Moises Mabanag, Superintendent Gerardo Ratuita, Chief Inspectors Cherry Lou Donato and Enrico Figueroa and Senior Inspector Roberto Razon. In April 2014,

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...

Kilusan Kontra Kabulukan at Katiwalian (4K) vehemently opposed the immediate conclusion of Trinidad Etong

case. 4K questioned the kasambahay's cleaning of the

crime scene A crime scene is any location that may be associated with a committed crime. Crime scenes contain physical evidence that is pertinent to a criminal investigation. This evidence is collected by crime scene investigators (CSI) and law enforcement. ...

, the early and unexplained presence of Globe Asiatique's Delfin Lee before the arrival of the PNP SOCO and

left-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to and causing it to be stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply l ...

Trinidad's negativity for paraffin test or

gunshot residue Gunshot residue (GSR), also known as cartridge discharge residue (CDR), gunfire residue (GFR), or firearm discharge residue (FDR), consists of all of the particles that are expelled from the muzzle of a gun following the discharge of a bullet. ...

from the subject Walther PK380.

Legal issues

In July 2020, the

Court of Appeals An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appellat ...

's Justice Pablito A. Perez, Twelfth Division denied the

defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

filed by Senator

Francis Tolentino Francis Ng Tolentino (, born January 2, 1960) is a Filipino politician and lawyer serving as a senator since 2019. He has been the Senate Majority Leader since 2024 and was formerly the chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee from 2022 t ...

against Failon. The 2017 case stemmed from Failon's commentary of possible misuse of

public funds Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual o ...

when MMDA Tolentino purchased used

motorcycles A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

. The appellate court ordered the

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

Regional Trial Court, Branch 18 to dismiss the criminal proceedings. In July 2024, the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

has dismissed the indirect contempt against Failon. The court held that Failon's

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

in a pending case between Satur Ocampo and Leandro Mendoza with STRADCOM Corporation is not contumacious and protected by the

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Ted Failon Latest news, photo and video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Failon, Ted 1962 births Living people Filipino radio journalists Filipino television news anchors Filipino Roman Catholics Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Leyte (province) Polytechnic University of the Philippines alumni People from Ermita Mass media people from Quezon City People from Tacloban ABS-CBN people ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs people TV5 Network people News5 people