3AF releases list of most impactful advertisers reaching Asian American consumers
Los ANGeLes – In celebration of Asian Pacific Islander American heritage month, the Asian American Advertising Federation (3AF) announces the “3AF Impact 50,” recognizing outstanding companies marketing to Asian Americans. this list celebrates fortune 500 and fortune 500 Global companies who have demonstrated exceptional commitment in engaging the 24-million strong Asian American consumer segment whose purchasing power is projected to reach $1.9 trillion in 2026. the announcement honors and celebrates advertisers and brands that have shown a meaningful commitment to the Asian American community by developing insights-driven creative and/or investing in media specifically targeting Asian American consumers.
3AF utilized a blend of data sources — including reports from Asian American media and community event organizers, agency updates, and ispot video research — to identify the Impact 50 advertisers. these are brands that have invested in the Asian American audience through paid media, events, and activations in 2024.
Cheryl Lee, president of the
3AF said, “The Asian American market continues to grow as one of the most influential and impactful consumer segments in the U.S. At 3AF, we’re proud to recognize and honor the advertisers and brands that have shown a genuine commitment to this vital community through meaningful investment and culturally relevant marketing.
We hope this list serves as a benchmark for industry excellence and inspires more companies to acknowledge the influence, loyalty, and purchasing power of the Asian American audience. By embracing this opportunity, brands can build stronger consumer connections, elevate brand perception, and unlock sustainable long-term growth.”
The 3AF Impact 50 is alphabetical and not a ranking.
Companies include: Acura, Adidas, Amazon (Prime Video), Apple, At&t, Bank of America, BMW, Bristol Meyers squib, Brown forman, Charter Communications (Spectrum), Chase, Citibank, Coca-Cola, Comcast NBCUniversal, Diageo, fox, General motors, Gilead sciences, hBo honda, hulu, humana, hyundai, Kia, Las Vegas sands, Lexus, Loreal, McDonalds, Meta (Instagram, facebook), mGm resorts
International, moet hennessy, Nationwide financial, Netflix, New York Life Insurance, Nike, Nissan, Paramount Global, Pernod ricard, Procter & Gamble, sanofi, sony Pictures, tiktok, toyota, UnitedHealthcare, Volvo, Walmart, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros, Wells fargo and Youtube. 3AF’s Impact 50 is available at https://www.3af.org/3af-2025impact-advertisers/. Companies who would like to be considered for next year’s list should visit the 3AF website. The 3AF encourages all marketers to continue their efforts in reaching the critical Asian American consumer segment and looks forward to expanding this list in the years ahead. the Asian American Advertising Federation (3AF) is the leading national voice for Asian American advertising and marketing, illuminating the power of this consumer segment. We unite advertising agencies, corporate marketers, media, research firms, and industry partners, empowering brands to engage this audience through our summit, webinars, research, and expert network. for more information, visit: www.3af.org. n
Editorial
As the 2025 Philippine midterm elections close, the country faces not just a political outcome, but a democratic reckoning. for all the progress made — especially the rollout of online voting — the nation still struggles to tap the full potential of its global citizens.
A sacred right, undermined by disconnection the overseas vote should be a celebration of democracy without borders. Yet as of may 2, 2025, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) reported that only 58,000 overseas voters had enrolled in the new online voting system — out of an estimated 2 million eligible Filipinos abroad (ABS-CBN News, April 15, 2025). for too many, the right to vote remains blocked — not by apathy, but by mistrust, confusion, and insufficient outreach.
Even the September 30, 2024 registration deadline passed with little fanfare. many dual citizens and overseas workers discovered too late that they had missed their opportunity — not
for months on end, a slew of fake news as well as bogus documents have been circulating on social media, among them a purported memorandum to the president claiming that the United States is urging the Philippine government to prioritize the impeachment of Vice President sara Duterte. the spurious document, which was also seeded to journalists, supposedly came from the office of National security Adviser
eduardo Año – known to be a true professional military officer – who naturally dismissed this stupidity as a total fabrication and vowed that a probe would be conducted to get to the bottom of the whole thing, and will file appropriate charges against those responsible.
because they were disengaged, but because they were uninformed. 2025 is a turning point, not a defeat though the numbers remain low, the significance of the 2025 elections lies in what it teaches us: that enfranchisement is not achieved through platforms alone. It must be built on trust, education, and timing. If the Philippines wants to realize the full power of the overseas vote by 2028, it must begin now:
• Launch early and multilingual civic education campaigns
• Streamline and simplify registration
• Invest in secure, user-friendly online platforms
• Actively engage dual citizens, seafarers, caregivers, and migrants alike
• Treat overseas voters as full democratic participants — not just economic contributors.
From remittances to representation Overseas Filipinos remit more than $36 billion annually, supporting families and powering the national economy. they are often called heroes. Yet heroism without representation is incomplete. To vote from abroad — whether as an OFW, immigrant, or dual citizen — is not just an act of
be distant, but I have not left. Let us meet that devotion
stories also circulated about President Donald trump supposedly snubbing President marcos during the funeral of Pope francis at st. Peter’s square in the Vatican. But thanks to extensive worldwide coverage, this claim was easily debunked by photos and videos showing the two leaders exchanging pleasantries, with President trump introducing PBBm to first Lady melania. there were 170 other world leaders who were also in attendance. obviously, this fake news was meant to sow intrigue between the two allies and undermine the strong relationship between the U.S. and the Philippines. this is not the first time that malign operations have been launched against the president and key government agencies and officials, spreading false information, creating fake stories, fake videos and even fake text messages. these perpetrators use the letterheads of government agencies and scan signatures that they attach to fake documents, combining and manipulating bits and pieces of information in a creative manner to make them look and sound legit.
Commentary
C a R l l o R enz C e R vantes there are parents who steal from their children’s achievements because they raised them and paid for their education. there are businesspeople who expect certain beneficial policies to be passed because they paid for a politician’s campaign. there are friends who expect you to always serve them because they helped you out once, in a serious time of need. on the one hand, there are things to be grateful for, and on the other, there is egotistic power tripping. “intindihin mo na, matanda na eh.” “Uy, magulang mo pa rin ‘yan.” We let a lot of abuse and exploitation happen because of our cultural expectations. they are your parents, of course they have your best intentions! they are your friends, of course we are meant to serve each other. But just because they invested in your potential does not mean that they care about you as a person. many people are trapped in
If one could recall, a fake memorandum was spread around facebook and messenger supposedly from the Philippine National Police, telling personnel
a survival mindset, where life is very kaniya-kaniya maybe, at some point in their life, they too were powerless, and regaining that power means having power over others. to them, relationships are not equal, but transactional. they do not love, they need. this is why “utang na loob” as a “debt of gratitude” can be so toxic, especially when it is weaponized to use others and take resources from them. But if something is “toxic,” it implies a “healthy” or “nourishing” alternative. Virgilio enriquez, a pioneer in the field of sikolohiyang Pilipino, said that we focus too much on the “utang” part and not so much on the philosophically rich “loob” aspect of it. Putting this value back in a kapwa mindset means seeing “utang na loob” not as “debt,” but as “solidarity.” We care for those who cared for us, because we value our kapwa reciprocity comes from within (bukal sa loob) and is intentional (kusang-loob). the question to be asked is, “What do we owe each other, as human beings?”
But let us go deeper. enriquez focused on challenging the tendency of people to interpret utang na loob as kaliwaan
to be on heightened alert because of an alleged destabilization plot being hatched by certain members of the Armed forces of the Philippines. And then there was that outrageous memorandum allegedly from malacañang bearing a fake signature of executive secretary Lucas Bersamin stating that a twoday salary deduction would be imposed on government workers to subsidize the president’s financial donation for victims of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in turkey and syria that claimed the lives of thousands, including a filipina and her three children. many of us serving in government have been victims of fake news not just once but several times, with fake memos being sent out to journalists via email and text from fictitious persons. And though I know that this is par for the course when you work for the government, what is disturbing is that fake information can now be manipulated and made to look authentic because of artificial intelligence.
According to a recent survey conducted by the Social Weather
(transaction). But look at how the phrase is said. for the longest time, I thought it was “utang ng loob,” in the sense that my interiority owed something to other people. Why do I have social debts just by existing? Why do I owe my entire life to people who have harmed me, just because we happen to be related by blood, or because I was desperately in need of help at one point?
But to say “utang na loob” implies that one’s interiority— their essence, will, being— is borrowed. We do not own anything in the world, not even our own identity. We are still ourselves, but we are just waves on an ocean. the wave might seem unique, but it cannot claim to own its own “waveness,” nor can it even claim that it is, by itself, the ocean. the wave is part of the ocean. In the same way, we are part of kapwa so, from whom do we borrow ourselves? from our childhood experiences, community relationships, and cultural immersion. Describing an individual self is also describing a context of their belongingness — their name and biology (from family), affiliations (from community), mindsets and
stations, majority of filipinos (59 percent) consider fake news to be a serious problem, with an even bigger number (65 percent) admitting that they have difficulty identifying if the material they heard, read or watched on radio, tV or social media was fake or erroneous.
In the “2024 Digital News report” published by the reuters Institute for the study of Journalism, a key finding is that concern over what is real and what is fake on the internet when it comes to online news has risen to 59 percent in 2024, up by 3 percent from 2023.
No doubt fake news has become so rampant, especially over social media, that it’s almost like a curse. even meta’s director of public policy for southeast Asia, rafael frankel, admits that it is “practically impossible” for them to control misinformation among the 3.2 billion Facebook users worldwide. experts also aver that fake posts spread at a rate that is much faster than the ability of meta to flag or take them down.
It’s astonishing how technology has made it easy for malign actors to manipulate
almost anything – from photos to videos – through the use of AI tools that can make these “deep fakes” look really authentic. But the sad part is when people already know that what they are spreading is fake news but continue to do so perhaps just for kicks, or because they are rabid supporters of a particular political party or personality, not realizing that what they are doing will just hurt themselves and worse, the country down the line. A UNESCO-commissioned survey published in 2023 that was conducted by Ipsos (covering 16 countries scheduled to hold elections in 2024) revealed that more than 85 percent of respondents are worried about the impact of online disinformation, while 87 percent are convinced that it has already negatively impacted politics in their respective countries. titled “survey on the impact of online disinformation and hate speech,” the global survey noted the importance of access to reliable information as a “basic prerequisite for informed debate on all of the challenges that societies face. however, as social
media platforms have become the preferred source of information for a growing number of citizens, concerns have been raised about the prevalence of falsehoods and hate speech, propelled by opaque algorithms that can favor engagement over factuality, and exacerbated by active exploitation by some political leaders and other actors.” It’s really pathetic that the may 12 elections is driving the proliferation of fake news exacerbated by hate-laced campaigning – which is why now, more than ever, legitimate media has to find a way to play a major role in fighting fake news and disinformation. most importantly, they must maintain credibility, fairness and objectivity in order to protect the integrity of news reporting and show the people that they can be trusted as sources of real – not fake – news. (Philstar.com)
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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.
* * * Email: babeseyeview@gmail.com
perspectives (from culture). The question is not just what we owe each other, as though other people must do something for us first, but more importantly, “Who am I really, without other people?” In this, we can find guidance from the perspective of french philosopher simone Weil, who pointed out that for any of us to have rights, we must first have obligations. to put it colloquially: Kung mayroong karapatan, mayroon ding pananagutan
In fact, whenever protestors remind us of their “human rights,” what they are actually doing is reminding us of our obligation to them, as
human beings helping human beings. this is the principle of saluhan,” where we answer for each other. If I see you struggling, I will not force you to pay for lunch — “sagot na kita.” If I know that you made an honest mistake and are about to be punished needlessly for it, do not worry — “Sasaluhin kita.” Ideally we must all be part of the net that catches, but in reality we know that usually only one person catches it all. Whether they are the responsible sibling or the workplace martyr, we call them the “tagasalo.” But this dynamic deserves its own deeper discussion, maybe sometime in the future. In any
case, the opposite of “saluhan” is clearly “laglagan,” which happens when we betray the trust of others. here is a good way to assess whether someone’s use of utang na loob” is healthy or toxic: for anyone to have the “right” to claim it, do they also follow through with their obligations to their kapwa? As we say, madaling maging tao, pero mahirap magpakatao. (inquirer.net)
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.
Babe’s Eye View
BaBe Romualdez
procedure. It is a patriotic stand. It is saying: I may
with systems worthy of
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green card was processed first, and she arrived in the U.S. in 2009. But only six months later, she made the painful decision to return to the Philippines to care for her
and the U.S. embassy deemed her green card abandoned.
Mother’s Day 2025: 12 celebrity moms...
larly shares glimpses of motherhood with her two children Vito and firstborn Pancho who has cerebral palsy.
Despite the challenges and even the “mom guilt,” magalona sees Pancho’s condition as “a privilege and honor with rewards beyond [their] wildest dreams.”
“having a child is the biggest move I’ve ever made. It completely changed my life and I don’t think any amount of preparation could have prepared me for this new life stage,” she said in a 2019 interview.
Iya Villania Iya Villania is definitely one
super mom, recently welcoming her fifth child at age 38. Amid her duties as a tV host, Villania finds time to spend quality time with her children, making sure that she’s present in every phase of their lives. on top of her many tasks, Vilania also prioritizes herself by keeping herself physically strong through religiously working out.
Jennica Garcia Jennica Garcia has earned the admiration of many for her candid way of sharing about her experiences as a single mom to her two daughters mori and Alessi. the actress admitted she strug-
gled financially that she was not even able to provide an air conditioning unit and water heater for her children.
But through hard work and her innate talent in acting, Garcia powered through and is now able to give her children a comfortable life. she recently shared that the three of them already moved from a studio type unit to a two-bedroom condo.
Mahirap maging single parent pero kaya pala talaga. Mahirap lang sa umpisa pero eventually, kapag nalampasan mo na at nakapag-heal ka na, sobrang empowering yung feeling,” she said in a Smart Parenting interview. PAGE 11
