Rico Hizon facts for kids

Rico Hizon, born on March 24, 1966, is a famous Filipino journalist. He is known for presenting news on big international channels. Since May 6, 2024, he has been a Senior Vice President for Corporate Relations at SM Investment Corp., a large company in the Philippines.

Before this, Rico worked for major news channels like BBC World News, CNBC Asia, and CNN Philippines. He was the first Filipino to be a main news anchor for both BBC and CNN Philippines, which is a big achievement!

Rico Hizon's Education

Rico studied Communication Arts and Business at De La Salle University in the Philippines. After graduating, he even taught classes there about radio, television, and broadcasting. He also has a special honorary doctorate degree in Humanities from the University of Northeastern Philippines.

Rico Hizon's Career Journey

Before becoming a well-known journalist, Rico started working at a young age. When he was just 16, he worked at the very first McDonald's restaurant in the Philippines, located in Manila. He was part of the first team to work there! Later, he worked at another McDonald's branch.

Starting at GMA Network

Rico began his career in broadcasting at GMA Network in Manila. He worked there from 1988 to 1995. During this time, he reported on important topics like banking, real estate, and company news. He hosted daily business shows such as Business Today and GMA News Live. He even reported live from the trading floor of the Philippine Stock Exchange. For his excellent work, Rico won "The Outstanding Young Men for Broadcast Journalism" award.

Rico Hizon with entrepreneur and investor Jonha Richman

Moving to CNBC Asia

In April 1995, Rico joined CNBC Asia. He worked from their offices in Hong Kong and later in Singapore. At CNBC Asia, he was the main anchor for morning shows like CNBC Today, Squawk Box, and Power Lunch.

Working at BBC News

Rico joined BBC World News in 2002. He presented daily business and finance programs like Asia Business Report and Asia Today live from Singapore. From June 2011, he co-presented Newsday, a news program on the BBC, from Singapore. He also reported on Asian business for World Business Report.

In November 2013, Rico reported live from Tacloban, Philippines, after Typhoon Haiyan caused a lot of damage. He also presented Newsday from London for a short time in 2014. After 17 years with BBC News, Rico announced in March 2020 that he would be leaving.

Joining CNN Philippines

A few weeks after leaving the BBC, Rico returned to the Philippines. He joined CNN Philippines as a senior anchor and director for news content development. He became the host of the 9 PM newscast, The Final Word. He also anchored a new business show called The Exchange, which started in July 2020.

Rico was a key part of CNN Philippines' coverage of the State of the Nation Address in July 2020. This was his first time covering this event in the Philippines since 1995. He anchored for a total of 7 hours that day! Rico left CNN Philippines on January 26, 2024, when the network stopped its news operations. During his time there, his program The Final Word won awards from the Asian Academy Creative Awards in 2020 and 2023.

After CNN Philippines

After CNN Philippines closed, Rico appeared on Net 25's Kada Umaga. In May 2024, he became the editor-in-chief of a news website called GoodNewsPilipinas.com. In September 2024, he became the Senior Vice President for Corporate Relations at SM Investments and started hosting a YouTube show called SM in Focus.

On October 29, 2024, Rico joined ABS-CBN News Channel. His new business talk show, Beyond the Exchange, started on November 5. He also appeared as an entertainment host on ABS-CBN's main news program TV Patrol on November 4, 2024.

Awards and Recognitions

Rico Hizon has received many awards for his work in journalism:

• People Asia Magazine "Men Who Matter" Awardee (2016)
• Best News Anchor at the Asian Television Awards (2014)
• Honorary Doctorate Degree in Humanities (2012)
• Broadcast Journalist of the Year by the Rotary Club of Manila (2012)
• People of the Year Award from People Asia Magazine (2010)
• La Sallian Achievement Award for Global Journalism (2009)
• Pamana ng Pilipino Presidential Award for excellence in International Journalism (2008)
• BPinoy Award and the first "Yes The Filipino Can!" Award (2008)
• The Outstanding Young Men Award for International Journalism and Community Service (2006)
• Nominated for Best News Presenter or Anchor at the 26th Asian Television Awards for The Final Word with Rico Hizon (2021)