I'M LIA.
I'm a television presenter, news, sports and weather anchor, live events host or emcee, voice over talent, writer and producer based in Manila, Philippines. Basically, if you need to get a message across, I'm your gal!
I'm also a wife to my husband Stevie and a mom to my two daughters, plus a whole bunch of fur kids! My family means the world to me.
MY STORY
I'm the eldest of four kids. We lived right smack in the middle of the city, although long road trips and beach sojourns were the norm throughout my formative years. Play an 80s song, and I am instantly transported back to my childhood, crammed into the backseat, snacking on chips and orange juice, while my dad barreled through national highways to the rhythm of Swing Out Sister.
I grew up doing ballet (over a decade of this! My mom was a ballerina.), theater and crafts. Later on, I got into swimming (to help my asthma), jazz, cheerleading, writing, and made my way to an AB Communication degree in Ateneo de Manila University. I like to tell people that the Jesuits did a number on me and instilled in me the drastic need for social justice.
MY CAREER
I always knew I wanted to work in media.
I started writing for glossy teen magazines when I was 15 years old, and my work has been published here and there ever since. I've even had the good fortune of having a young adult short story published in a book.
And although I had been doing the occasional television commercial and dabbling in cable TV acting specials as a kid, it was when I landed a job covering college basketball, while still a student myself, that my broadcasting career kicked off.
Since then, I've done television, radio and digital, live events, voice overs and on cam video presenting. I've worked in the Philippines, and across the globe. In a career that started in 2005, I've covered topics as varied as news and current events, sports, weather, environment, lifestyle, active lifestyle, travel, technology, and many more.
I have traveled to many different places for my job, covering numerous international events and issues, and building many connections and relationships along the way.
SPORTS NEWS ANCHOR
My most recent on camera role in broadcasting was as an anchor for the Philippine edition of ESPN's SportsCenter, in a partnership between TV5 and ESPN HQ in Connecticut, USA.
I was also recently an anchor for the 2019 SEA Games News Channel, which was broadcast all over Southeast Asia. In the past, I have also been a sports news segment anchor for quite a few different newscasts.
NEWS ANCHOR
I was an anchor for late night newscast Aksyon Tonite. I have also anchored hourly news updates, and have done studio coverage for national events in the Philippines, including national elections, for TV5.
WEATHER ANCHOR
I was the weather anchor for Pilipinas News, which later became Aksyon Tonite, before I became one of the main anchors. I have also done hourly weather updates on different shows and channels.
It was my work as a weather anchor that led me to work that created awareness on climate change and the environment, to projects with the World Meteorological Organization, the United Nations, Forum International de la Meteo Climat, and Climate Without Borders.
HOST, PRESENTER AND EMCEE
I've hosted numerous TV shows with topics that run the gamut from sports, lifestyle, travel, tech, motoring, and many more. I've also been a video jock for a basketball channel, a job which gave me the opportunity to cover the NBA.
Off camera, I also host my podcast What Glass Ceiling? with Lia Cruz, and have been tapped as an events host/emcee for numerous companies, organizations and campaigns.
TV REPORTER
I've been both a courtside or sideline reporter, and a field reporter for sports and weather news. I've covered many international sporting events such as the Olympics, the FIBA World Cup, the Southeast Asian Games, the AFF and AFC Cups, the PBA, and more, as well as tropical storms and typhoons from a weather perspective.
WRITER
My work has been published in broadsheet newspapers, glossy magazines, news and lifestyle websites, and in a young adult anthology of poetry and fiction in the Philippines.
In my broadcasting career, I have also written all of my reports as a TV reporter, as well as daily scripts for news items and interviews.
MY CAUSES
My voice has always been particularly loud (literally and figuratively) and has never been reserved solely for use in my career. I have always used it to further causes I believe in, especially to amplify messages concerning women and women empowerment, social justice, and climate change and the environment.
I have worked with the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations on international projects to raise awareness on climate change, and I have been tapped as a panelist/speaker/moderator in Manila for these issues by the World Bank, Ateneo de Manila University, Allianz PNB, and more. I am also a founding member of Climate Without Borders, an international organization of weather presenters, based in Brussels, Belgium.
My podcast, What Glass Ceiling? recently launched on International Women's Day 2021. WGC is a series of intimate conversations with inspiring women on their life journeys. My partner Stef and I conceptualized it in hopes that hearing about prominent women's struggles would encourage and inspire others going through similar situations.
In SportsCenter PH, I hosted Making HerStory, a weekly segment where we got the chance to tell the stories of women athletes and sports personalities. Some interviews were emotional, some were upbeat, all were inspiring.
I've also moderated panels that have tackled women's issues, for organizations such as the Swiss Embassy in Manila.
I have also been an ambassador for awareness campaigns such as Health Justice's Time's Up Tobacco!, and Fund Life International's Girls Got This.
