Friday, 17 January 2025

Wannabe YouTuber Is a Video Thief

Volume 6, Issue No. 28

OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of Romar Media Canada, The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail.com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . . .
 
Our latest as of Friday, January 17, 2025 

~ A video thief found an easy way to boost her profile on YouTube by stealing my video coverage of the protest rally against the rapists of movie starlet Pepsi Paloma who performed in Toronto in April 2014. It's an unpleasant discovery, to say the least. The steal was no different from what Taste of Manila (ToM) festival organizers had done in 2020 when they manipulated and spliced the purloined footage with images of people who were not in the festival in the first place.

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WHO IS VIVIAN BARRERA? 

Another Video Thief Exposed 

Stolen video raised hundreds of views in her channel



By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel


"You cannot steal somebody's intellectual property. Law and justice protect." - Bikram Choudhury


TORONTO - With total views as of this writing totaling 3,135,754 views, and 6.28K subscribers, it's almost a given that individuals with little or no experience in video journalism and/or online (digital) journalism would resort to stealing contents from The Filipino Web Channel (TFWC) which I founded in November 2010.

Some of these individuals are totally ignorant. Some are wishful dreamers who aspire to be journalists but are too incompetent to even qualify. Some possess the derring-do to make money from the sweat of other people. Some are simply thieves.

TFWC is one of my four flagship outlets under my eponymous social media network Romar Media Canada. The others are Currents & Breaking News (aka The Gotcha Journalist) or C&BN, Filipino Web Entertainment, and Eats & Restos channels.

C&BN had accumulated 1,793,959 views; FilWebEntertainment, 2,134,156; and E&R, 373,712. Altogether, they have combined views of 7,437,581, which I consider a feat in local digital journalism. 

That kind of viewership or online exposure is impossible to attain when writing (thus, readership) for a community newspaper that purports to be the largest in Toronto.

The growing number of people who visit my channels has not escaped notice. Every now and then I get offers of partnerships with big corporations for advertising insertions. Well, thank you, but I have to discuss such proposals with YouTube.

The latest suggestion came yesterday, Jan. 16, from a world-renowned brand, whose PR manager wrote: "We love your engaging content and your amazing rapport with your viewers. It's exciting to see how much value you bring to your platform, and we'd be honored to partner with you."

Days ago while searching for more information about the lawsuit brought by one of the rapists of starlet Pepsi Paloma, I came across a video thief named Vivian Barrera who took a very big slice of what should have been my viewers to try to grow her piddling channel on YouTube.

She stole and manipulated content from my news coverage without the slightest courtesy, or giving credit to my YouTube channel as her source, or asking permission to copy it. 

I would have agreed to let her if she showed some respect. But no, she even took out my introductory footage, my byline, and covered the watermark.

Now, this thief brings back again the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival organizers, notably its alleged founder, Rolly "kabise" Mangante, who are the most-visible functionaries with the audacity to steal my copyrighted intellectual property and put it up as their own.

His erstwhile friends at International Entertainment Company (IEC) like Cecile Araneta and Ramon Datol, both of whom he dumped in favor of SPARC (Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community, have pointed to him as the brains behind the steal.

(Related videos:
The two business partners identified the co-conspirators of Rolly Mangante as Philip Beloso, Pepito Torralba, Jerome Peralta, Dannasol Luna and her unidentified brother. (Full story: Non-Profit Org Blamed for Video Theft Vanishes).

What they did was no different from what this Vivian Barrera did. She stole, manipulated, and uploaded my video of the protest rally against the rapists of movie starlet Pepsi Paloma at Sony Centre for the Performing Arts in April 2014.

The intro and brief background story in the first 57 minutes of my video titled "Outrage Over Rape of Pepsi Paloma Erupts in Protest at 'Eat Bulaga' in Toronto (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeH2QoGkyPQ) were removed and the edited/manipulated video was then uploaded to her channel.

My original video had only 57,752 views as of today (Jan. 17), a mere quarter of what the stolen video had amassed, which is 217,398 views. Because of that wide disparity, I had to rewrite the headline to make it more competitive with what Vivian Barrera had purloined from my own channel.

Vivian Barrera, the video thief, had only three short videos since she joined YouTube in September 2013. That shows how inept she is. She can't even provide a brief description of what her videos are about.

The three videos are inconsequential, recording only 46 views, 17views, and 9 views for each one. The fourth video on her channel is about Pepsi Paloma, which she claimed to be hers but actually stolen from my channel and had given her a big boost - 217,398 views as of yesterday.

I Google-searched her name in hopes of seeing her internet presence. There's none except for the "vivian barrera" channel. Who is Vivian Barrera? Is she a professional larcenist?

Barrera's thievery predated ToM's stealing by three years. Initially I thought that what Mangante had told his co-conspirators to do was worse. (Related video: Social Climbers in PESO Steal Street Festival Content)


Mangante had people manipulating my videos, splicing them with pictures of his wife Nieves, supporters like Cecile Araneta, and political friends like Councillor James Pasternak, MP Marco Mendicino, and others with whom he was ingratiating himself.

In both Barrera's and ToM's stealing, they're reaping the fruits of my labour. They also have committed an unlawful act. Should I hail them to court, as one lawyer-friend has suggested? Would it be worth my time to pursue them? (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved.)

Tuesday, 14 January 2025

Film Stokes New Interest in Gang Rape of Pepsi Paloma


Volume 6, Issue No. 27

OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of Romar Media Canada, The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail.com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . . .
 
Our latest as of Tuesday, January 14, 2025 

~ Public interest in the gang-rape and death of 14-year-old movie starlet Pepsi Paloma gets reignited after one of the accused rapists, comedian Vic Sotto of "Eat Bulaga" variety show, filed 19 counts of cyber libel against filmmaker Daryl Yap apparently for including his name in a teaser promoting the movie in the Philippines. Sotto, co-accused Joey De Leon, and the whole cast of the show performed in Toronto in April 2014. 

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RAPE OF 14-YEAR-OLD STARLET PEPSI PALOMA

New Movie Reignites Rape Charge v. Actors 

Vic Sotto of 'Eat Bulaga' Files Cyber Libel Case



By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel



"My advice is, if he's worried about his reputation, don't rape anyone." - Chanel Miller


TORONTO - Friends in the homeland have called my attention to the latest news developments in the 40-year-old gang-rape and suspicious death of movie starlet Pepsi Paloma by three confessed assailants belonging to the "Eat Bulaga" (EB) variety show.

Because they have a devoted following here, the Filipino community in Toronto is inextricably linked to EB and its mainstays, namely Vic Sotto, Joey de Leon, Tito Sotto, and the whole cast minus the now-deceased Richie Reyes alias Richie d'Horsie.

In April 2014, EB performed at Sony Centre for the Performing Arts (now Meridian Hall) in downtown Toronto even in the face of a protest rally by concerned citizens condemning the sexual assault on the 14-year-old Pepsi Paloma at a hotel in 1982.

"Pepsi Paloma was only 14 years old when she and another actress named Guada Guarin reported that they were drugged in a bar and brought to a room at the Sulo Hotel in Quezon City where they were 'gang-raped' by Joey De Leon, Vic Sotto and Richie D'Horsie, the comedian hosts of the popular TV show 'Eat Bulaga!'," lawyer Rodel Rodis wrote in the Inquirer on March 15, 2014. 

At that time, Vic Sotto (now 70 years old) was 28; De Leon (now 78) was 36; and Richie D'Horsie, was 26, and died at age 58 in 2015.

Four decades after that crime was committed, a 38-year-old filmmaker named Daryl Yap has come out with a teaser to promote his documentary about Pepsi Paloma (real name: Delia Duenas Smith, born July 17, 1966, died May 31, 1985 at age 18). Yap and Paloma are from Olongapo, Zambales.

It is Yap's teaser that has reignited interest in the case, especially after Vic Sotto, accompanied by former EB dancer and now wife Pauleen Luna, filed 19 counts of cyber libel in a Muntinglupa court, apparently for including his name in the promotional teaser of the movie titled The Rapists of Pepsi Paloma. (More info: https://www.pep.ph/news/local/184815/vic-sotto-darryl-yap-cyberlibel-a718-20250109).

Luna, now 36 years old, wasn't born yet when the gang-rape happened. Sotto, then age 62, married Luna, age 28, in 2016. Thirty-four years exist between them. (Related video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FLfYCfxNdc).


When they were in Toronto, none of the major actors agreed to be interviewed. In fact, their handlers blocked any attempt by The Filipino Web Channel to join their press conference at the Intercontinental Hotel on April 10, 2014. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOkAKDZC7dU).

The outrage has not gone down. That's evident from the news feed that I'm getting from Manila after friends watched my news coverage of the protest against EB in Toronto.

Related video coverage:

Faced with the possibility of death by electrocution at that time when the country was still under martial law, Sotto, De Leon and Reyes confessed and publicly apologized, calling the gang-rape an "error".

Their published statement read: "We hope that you will not allow the error we have committed against you to stand as a stumbling block to that future which we all look forward to. We therefore ask you to find it in your heart to pardon us for the wrong which we have done against you."

Ray Sabatin, leader of the Toronto protesters, would not be assuaged. He said: "What kind of conscience are these people telling us? I am leading this demonstration to let the operators of 'Eat Bulaga' know that we did not forget what happened to the poor girl, Pepsi Paloma." 

"They have the nerve to proudly show their gig in my adopted land, peaceful Canada," he continued. "Articles and blogs in the worldwide web indicate to me they murdered the poor girl. They got away with heinous crime - rape and murder. These people are making a joke out of us," he added. 

Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto's older brother and a former senator, was not involved in the gang-rape but was instrumental in having Pepsi Paloma dropped the case in exchange for the apology by the three rapists. 

Paloma was reportedly given 300,000 pesos (about $6,000) as part of the settlement. 

Three years later in 1985, Pepsi Paloma was found dead. Police said she committed suicide, a claim that was widely discredited. More likely, she was murdered, according to her fans and people close to her. (Full story at: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/1003...
.) (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved).

Friday, 10 January 2025

Judge Upholds Guilty Verdict, Sentences Trump But No Jail Time

Volume 6, Issue No. 26

OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of Romar Media Canada, The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail.com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . . .
 
The News UpFront: (TOP STORY) as of Friday, January 10, 2025 

~ A New York judge finalized on Friday Donald Trump's felony convictions on 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal payment to a porn star he had sex with, an accusation he had repeatedly denied. Trump goes down in history as the only convicted felon to be president of the United states. 

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THE 45TH AND SOON-TO-BE 47TH U.S. PRESIDENT 

Donald Trump Is Sentenced 

Judge Juan Merchan Upholds Guilty Verdict



By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel



TORONTO - Donald Trump walks through history with an unparalleled record as the first-ever president-elect, and soon-to-be President of the United States, convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying his business records to conceal hush money payment to a porn star he had sex with, a charge he had consistently denied.

New York Judge Juan Merchan, formally upholding on Friday (January 10, 2025) the guilty verdict handed down last year by a New York grand jury, sentenced the 78-year-old Trump to "unconditional discharge" and released with no jail time.


Trump, the 45th US president, and on January 20 the 47th after winning the 2024 election against Vice President Kamala Harris, succeeds incumbent Joe Biden. 

He takes over the White House, the most powerful office in the world,  with a felony conviction to his name. Trump appeared in the New York court virtually from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved.)

Wednesday, 8 January 2025

Donald Trump's Expansionist Musings

Volume 6, Issue No. 25

OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of Romar Media Canada, The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail.com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . . .
 
Our latest as of Wednesday, January 8, 2025 

~ The convicted felon Donald Trump, elected US president in the November 2024 election and will assume office on January 20, 2025, has advanced his idea of Canada being the "51st state" of the United States and its Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, "governor of Canada." Trump has also cast his eyes on Greenland and Mexico and a takeover of the Panama Canal. Perhaps these musings are the modern-day remake of the 19th century belief embodied in "Manifest Destiny" of America's territorial expansion. 

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CANADA - THE 51ST STATE OF THE U.S.?

Justin Trudeau: Not So Fast, Donald!

'There Isn't a Snowball's Chance in Hell . . .'



By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel


"The smaller the mind the greater the conceit." - Aesop



TORONTO - Donald Trump salivates at getting Canada the "51st state" of the United States. He has also cast covetous eyes on Greenland, Mexico and Panama, specifically the Panama Canal.

Perhaps these musings are the modern-day remake of the 19th century belief embodied in "Manifest Destiny" of America's colonialism and territorial expansion. 


His intention, amplified on social media accounts and multiple press statements, has caused so much consternation among leaders and citizens of those countries.

For one, Justin Trudeau, now the lame-duck Prime Minister of Canada after announcing he was stepping down until a new party leader is chosen, managed to stand up to Trump after the latter repeatedly mocked him as "governor of Canada".

"There isn't a snowball's chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States," Trudeau tweeted on X on Tuesday (Jan. 7) afternoon. (Related video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ag-avnpItw).

"Not have a snowball's chance in hell" is an idiom meaning, according to the dictionary, "to be completely impossible or incredibly unlikely, to have no chance whatsoever."

In his musings, Trump said "Many Canadians want Canada to become the 51st State." Further, he wrote on Truth Social: "They would save massively on taxes and military protection. I think it is a great idea. 51st State!!!"

Trudeau's mid-December visit to Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida gave Trump reason to mock him again, saying: "It was a pleasure to have dinner the other night with Governor Justin Trudeau of the Great State of Canada."

At that time, Trudeau took everything in stride. Not until yesterday, a day after he announced in a press conference in Ottawa that he was resigning as prime minister but will hold on to the office until a new party leader is chosen in March.

Assuming Trump's imperial aspirations come to fruition, the addition of Canada alone would have expanded the United States to the length and breadth of North America even more.

Not since the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 (which added 12 territories) had the original 13 colonies that made up the United States doubled its size. 


With the purchase of Florida from Spain in 1819, 
the annexation of Texas in 1845, the Mexican Cession of 1848 (adding California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and parts of Colorado and New Mexico), and the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867, among others, the US has grown bigger.

For nearly half a century, the Philippines was a colony of the US. From Spain, the islands (along with Puerto Rico and Guam) were handed to the Americans after the US defeated the Spanish armada in the Battle of Manila Bay. The US paid Spain $20 million for the islands.

Trump's territorial ambitions have historical precedents. US presidents before him had initiated seizing lands either through conquests, annexation, cession, and other means. (More info at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_evolution_of_the_United_States).

On a personal note, I'm delighted to see Trudeau reacting strongly to Trump. Other Canadian officials, notably Ontario Premier Doug Ford, and former federal finance minister Chrystia Freeland, have rejected Trump's unrelenting teasing.

Whether it's a practical joke or not, I for one consider it an affront to Canadians and to their moral values considering that Trump is an adjudicated sexual offender (Donald Trump raped E. Jean Carroll even though he was found liable only for 'sexual abuse,' judge rules)

Trump's continuous taunt is an underestimation of our worth. It reduces us to mere adjuncts who could be easily subordinated by being bullied. (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved.)