‘Citizen Pinoy’ wins media award for serving overseas Filipinos

ABS-CBN International/The Filipino Channel’s (TFC) weekly program Citizen Pinoy hosted by U.S. Immigration Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel, won for Best Regular TV Show on Migration at the 2017 Migration Advocacy and Media Awards. CONTRIBUTED

DALY CITY, California — “Citizen Pinoy,” a weekly program dubbed as TFC’s “passport to immigration information,” won the Television Journalism Award – Best Regular TV Program Category in the 2017 Migration Advocacy and Media (MAM) Awards last month.

Attorney Michael J. Gurfinkel, a U.S. immigration attorney and host of “Citizen Pinoy,” received the award at a ceremony held at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila during International Migrants Day, December 18.

Gurfinkel said that he was “really humbled and honored about the award because it represents the recognition of the Filipino Overseas Worker and the sacrifices they have made, especially those in America where they leave their families behind, wondering if or when they will ever see their families again.”

Citizen Pinoy is a weekly program that airs on ABS-CBN International’s TFC. The show specializes in helping the Filipino community deal with immigration issues and legal problems in North America.

Philippine Migrants’ Rights Watch President Carmelita Nuqui (left) and Commission on Filipinos Overseas Officer in Charge (OIC) Ma. Regina Galias (right) award TFC representatives (from left to right) Segment Head for ABS-CBN Asia Pacific Eric Martin Santos; “Citizen Pinoy” host Atty. Michael Gurfinkel and campaign TV commercial “Papa’s Boy” producer Francis Bryan Lua for their back-to-back wins. CONTRIBUTED

The show explains immigration procedures and features success stories, “to give Filipinos pag-asa (hope).” The program often features heart-wrenching and heart-warming stories of separation, sacrifice and salvation. Other episodes take on the Q & A format to better answer the concerns of viewers.

The MAM Awards was conceived in 2011 by the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) to honor December as the Month of Overseas Filipinos, and to celebrate International Migrants Day in the Philippines every December 18.

The panel of judges for the MAM Awards was headed by CFO Interim OIC Maria Regina Angela Galias, with members from the different migration and media institutions, which include Philippine Migrants Rights Watch, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Presidential Communications Operations Office, Philippine Information Agency, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and National Press Club of the Philippines.

The CFO selected 10 winners from among entries submitted from around the world, each telling stories that advocate for the rights of the overseas Filipino, across various media platforms.

Citizen Pinoy airs nationwide in the U.S. and Canada on TFC on Sundays at 6:15 P.M. (PST) with replays the following Sundays at 2:00 A.M. (PST). The program also airs in Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Click here for the full list of winners of the 2017 Migration Advocacy and Media (MAM)  Awards.