Teka Teka

Description: Harvard Nieman Fellow, veteran journalist, and AI expert Jaemark Tordecilla took a snapshot of recent spending on Facebook ads and found national politicians alongside obscure councilors, foreign names, casinos, and pages disguised as news. What does it tell us a year before the campaign period? And what does this investigative experiment teach us about other ways AI can be used to ex...

Let’s talk about spaces many of us find beautiful—and intimidating. What actually happens inside a museum? Who is it for? And how do women shape the way we experience history, art, and culture? We sat down with three women from the Ayala Museum: Monica Fernandez (Digital Experience), Clarissa “Clari” Borja (Tours and Education), and Tenten Miina (Curatorial). Together, they talk about museum anxie...

The fight against plastic pollution is not just for scientists. It is a challenge that calls on every Filipino to take part. In this episode, we explore PlastiCount Pilipinas, a groundbreaking initiative by the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute, led by Dr. Deo Onda. The project aims to count and track plastic waste nationwide, providing the baseline data needed for science-bas...

A decade after the first tokhang-related killing, we examine how we practice the Christian values of justice, redemption, and forgiveness with the help of sociologist Jayeel Cornelio in this episode from 2023.  🎧 Listen on Spotify 🎧 Watch on YouTube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every Holy Week, Catholic devotees go on a five-hour pilgrimage to Antipolo. How did this tradition even begin? And what's changed since it started 500 years ago? We bring back an episode from 2021 to answer these questions. 🎧 Listen on Spotify 🎧 Watch on YouTube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a tradition that’s deeply embedded in how we celebrate Holy Week. But what is the history behind it? Is it sanctioned by the Church? Is there an official melody? Historian Xiao Chua, who has been practicing the Pasyon since he was a young boy in Tarlac, answers these questions in an episode from 2020. 🎧 Listen on Spotify 🎧 Watch on YouTube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more inf...

As the US-Israeli war on Iran escalates, its effects are felt far beyond the battlefield, hitting everyday expenses for Filipinos. Fuel prices are rising, and the cost of basic goods continues to climb in an import-dependent economy. We speak with Amihan Mabalay of SUKI Consumers Network about how ordinary consumers are navigating the crisis, the growing calls for government action, and why the wo...

We continue our Women's Month series on Thought Bubbles with a conversation a lot of us were told we shouldn't have. Two doctors sit down with us to discuss sexual and reproductive health, holding our hand in the way we wish our moms, our teachers, and even our OB-GYNs had.  With Hara Clinic lead OB-GYN Dr. Elva Sarte-Uygongco and medical director Dr. Deano Reyes, we get into painful sex, per...

Pat Villaceran is a macro economist, a CEO, a mentor to founders, a lyricist, and a single mom of three daughters. She is also the woman behind Hinabi Privé, a cultural experience that blends original music, storytelling, food, and cocktails into evenings that people don't stop talking about. In this Women's Month episode, Pat unpacks how a love for Filipino culture and a refusal to be boxed in be...

“West Philippine Sea, atin ’to!” But what exactly are we fighting for? Ten years after the Philippines’ landmark victory in the Permanent Court of Arbitration over disputes in the South China Sea, tensions remain high. Yet the fight for the West Philippine Sea is not only about territory. It’s about food security, livelihoods, biodiversity, and the future of millions of Filipinos. We sit down with...

Quezon City lawmaker Bong Suntay faces an ethics complaint for his remarks about his desire for a celebrity and his subsequent imaginings during the House Justice Committee’s hearings into the impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte last week. Cancelled on social media and scolded by peers, he is not the first to be called out for his words and actions. We talk to an expert and...

Juanito “Quiccs” Maiquez is an internationally acclaimed toy designer, illustrator, and graffiti artist whose bold vision fuses street culture with the premium collector market. He made history at the Designer Toy Awards in New York with a rare three-peat win as Artist of the Year (2018–2020). Quiccs also became the first Filipino artist to sign a creator deal with Adidas, designing official produ...

Boys' Love—once a niche genre quietly circulating among manga fans—has exploded into a global phenomenon and “Heated Rivalry” sits at the epicenter. With its searing rivals-to-lovers arc, elite sports backdrop, and the kind of slow-burn tension that makes viewers lose sleep, it has pulled in two unlikely but passionate audiences: cisgender women and gay men. In this episode of Thought Bubbles, two...

As the International Criminal Court determines whether it should put former President Rodrigo Duterte on trial for crimes against humanity, we look back on his war on drugs and how it drastically changed the lives of millions of Filipinos. Listen to this recast episode from 2020, part one of an audio documentary where we inquire into his bloody campaign to rid the streets of narcotics and criminal...

Burnout doesn’t always look like failure. Sometimes, it looks like doing everything “right” — and still feeling exhausted, lost, or behind. In this episode, former PumaPodcast producer Jyn Garcia revisits her own experience with early-career burnout through the lens of the Hero’s Journey, a storytelling framework popularized by Joseph Campbell. Drawing from her background in screenwriting and film...

What does toppling a dictatorship sound like? In this special episode from 2022, we bring you the first three parts of Radyo Malaya, a radio drama we produced for the Cultural Center of the Philippines using archival sound recordings from Radyo Veritas and the Philippine Information Agency. Listen to all ten parts on Spotify . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After years of partnership with Meta, fact-checkers worldwide are facing an existential threat. Journalist Nica Hanopol speaks to Celine Samson from VERA Files, who takes us inside the day-to-day reality of fighting misinformation while platforms shift their priorities and funding disappears. Samson unpacks why this moment is a turning point for Philippine audiences and how fact-checkers are remai...

Every Chinese New Year, feng shui advice floods our feeds—lucky colors, money corners, quick rearrangements meant to “reset” the year ahead. But what happens when those changes don’t seem to do anything? In this episode of Thought Bubbles on Teka Teka, we sit down with Pauline Rana to unpack the gap between mainstream feng shui tips and the more personalized framework behind classical feng shui. I...

Malamig ba ang Valentine's Day mo? Seen-zoned lang ni crush? Baka naman ipinagkatiwala mo na lang ang love life mo sa dating apps? In this 2020 episode from the Usapang Econ Podcast, experts JC Punongbayan and Jeff Arapoc discuss the economics behind love and attraction. Check out the podcast on Spotify Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Not in this economy” has become shorthand for how many young Filipinos are navigating adulthood today. In 2026, the Philippine economy continues to grow — but not evenly, and not in ways that always translate into financial security for those just starting out. While official indicators point to stability, Gen Z faces persistent challenges around underemployment, wage stagnation, and delayed mile...

How do we defend history in an age of speed, noise, and disinformation? In this live conversation from Maki+Fiesta 2.0, historian, educator and author Professor Xiao Chua joins Lyn Olavario and Hannah Tasarra for a candid conversation on public history, technology, and why truth matters—especially for younger audiences. Recorded in the middle of the festival, the discussion touches on creative pla...

What does it really feel like to watch Alex Eala play live — not on a screen, but from the stands? In this episode, we are joined by journalist and writer Carla Lim Teng-Westergaard to talk about the experience of attending professional tennis matches as a Filipino fan: navigating silence and applause, reading the crowd, and learning how tennis culture works in real time. Drawing from firsthand ex...

Alex Eala has put Philippine tennis in the spotlight — and with it comes excitement, new fans, and a learning curve. Tennis in the Philippines is having a moment, and as new audiences fill the stands and global attention turns toward the country, this episode unpacks the growing pains of a sport entering the mainstream. What does it mean to support an athlete well? How do we balance passion with s...

At Maki+Fiesta 2.0, artist Arthur Tselishchev sits down with Hannah Tasarra for a live conversation on art, memory, and responsibility in times of war. A Ukrainian artist who has made the Philippines his home, Arthur reflects on creating work amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, now more than three years since the full‑scale invasion began in February 2022—using painting not as spectacle, but as...

Trigger warning: This episode discusses animal cruelty, including instances of abuse, neglect, and mistreatment. Some content may be distressing for listeners. Following the recent conviction of a mall security guard for killing a puppy, conversations around animal cruelty and accountability have resurfaced. While public outrage is often swift, justice is not. In this rerun of Teka Teka, PAWS chie...