Latino Daily News: Bringing You the Latest Hispanic Current Events and News Stories 24/7

“Black Ops,” the seventh installment of the “Call of Duty” franchise produced by Activision and developed by Treyarch, has been released today, in 3D, and in multiple platforms. The 3D developer is Mexican Roberto Sanchez.

The first person shooter promises to become the best combat game of the season, if not the best game of 2010; having been available for only a few hours, there are already thousands of reviews and comments on social media calling “Black Ops” the pinnacle of the series, even over its predecessor “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,” a title that sold 4.7 million copies world wide in 24 hours and as of January 18, 2010, has taken over $1 billion in sales. Not ten whole hours after its release, it is the most talked subject on Tweeter.

“We are going to break every record set by other “Call of Duty” titles,” said Mexican Roberto Sánchez, the director of 3D development.  A new feature that producers hope to seduce gamers with is its cutting edge stereoscopic technology, that according to Sánchez, gives users a “Unique immersion experience” and provides a completely new and never before seen depth to the game play, as 3D makes aiming sniper guns, pilot helicopters and rappel down mountains a far more real and enveloping experience.

Another draw is the enthralling story, written by David Goyer (Blade, The Dark Knight) that narrates through flashbacks secret military operations during Vietnam and the Cold War.  In addition, the game counts with voice performances by actors Sam Worthington, Ed Harris, Gary Oldman, Ice Cube and Topher Grace.

Perhaps the most popular feature amongst gamers, is the multi-player mode online. Several users skip the solo-mode altogether, and connect the consoles to the internet for hours of online matches, where up to 18 people can compete against each other, or collaborate on cooperative missions.

Newbies, worry not. Sánchez said that “Black Ops” comes with a training mode that will get you up to date with the dirty tricks of online gamers and will coach you through tactics, moves and strategies as well as let you decide the difficulty of the game, so you don’t get slaughtered on multiplayer mode.

But if stunning graphics, 3D technology, the biggest online multiplayer roster of friends and foes, huge names in entertainment, customizable characters, weapons and outfits and multi-platform action (Xbox 360,  PS3, Wii, PC and Nintendo DS) don’t tickle your fancy, did I mention “Black Ops” has a zombie mode? But that’s not all!

Guess which Latin American dictator you can man through hordes of brain hungry goons crowding the pentagon? Watch and See.

Read more by HS News Staff →

Continuing its upward ratings climb, mun2, pronounced ‘moon dos’, recorded its best month in the network’s history in October 2010 during Monday through Sunday primetime, according to Nielsen Media Research.  The cable channel launched in 2001 as part of Telemundo cable owned by NBC.

mun2, also finished October 2010 as the fastest growing Hispanic cable network in Monday through Sunday primetime, across all key demographics among Hispanic viewers. 

Statistically mun2 is the second most watched Hispanic cable network and maintaining a solid #1 spot in the young Latino space with a 72% 18-34 audience market share beating Tr3s: MTV, Musica y Mas.  The programming on the cable channel is primarily music videos with a large segment of its programming in English.

Read more at TV by the Numbers →

The American Ballet Theater, performed in Cuba twice last week as part of the 22nd International Ballet Festival and in spite of stalled Congressional debate regarding lifting the 40 year old embargo.  The Ballet Theater last visited Cuba as a company in 1960, shortly before the United States severed ties with this Communist country. 

This cultural exchange was one of several that have occurred recently taking reknown U.S. cultural institutions to Cuba.  Last Month the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra visited Cuba for a weeklong artistic residency.  Cubans have also enjoyed performances by the New York City Ballet recently.  The cultural exchanges consist of American artists taking dance or music classes with Cuban teachers and vice versa.

Two American Ballet’s principals are Cuban born Manuel Carreño and Xiomara Reyes and both were on hand to visit where they started their dance careers and visit with family still in Cuba.  All are hopeful that they can come and perform freely in Cuba very soon. 

Read more at NY Times →

Acting Deputy Attorney General Gary G. Grindler recently invested 23 new immigration judges during a ceremony held at the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s (EOIR) headquarters, marking a roughly 10 percent increase in the judges corps in just one day.

Immigration judges conduct formal court proceedings to determine whether an individual from a foreign country should be allowed to remain in the United States.

Chief Immigration Judge, Brian M. O’Leary welcomed the new arrivals:

“We have made great progress since we began our robust immigration judge hiring initiative earlier this year. These new immigration judges bring the judge corps of our 59 immigration courts to 262, and we expect to further enhance the corps by additional immigration judges before the end of the calendar year.”

The new judges will preside over immigration courts located through the country.

Before being selected for the job, applicants are thoroughly reviewed. First, EOIR human resources department refer eligible applicants to the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge. Then, four panels of assistant chief immigration judges screen the applications according to the following criteria:

  * ability to demonstrate the appropriate temperament to serve as a judge;
  * knowledge of immigration laws and procedures or of a comparable area of law;
  * substantial litigation experience, preferably in a high-volume context; experience handling complex legal issues;
  * experience conducting administrative hearings;
  * and knowledge of judicial practices and procedures.

The most highly recommended candidates are selected for interviews. Top candidates are then referred for a second review and interviewed by a panel of senior Department of Justice officials. The Attorney General then makes the final selections.

To learn more about this new class of immigration judges, read their full biographies here. (PDF)

Read more at Department of Justice →

A new United Nations study warns of the perils of abuse and exploitation that threaten migrant children from Latin America and calls for policies to protect their rights.

The authors of “Children and international migration in Latin America and the Caribbean,” published today by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), note that migration may bring some benefits such as greater educational and job opportunities.

At the same time, the study notes that restrictive migration policies, xenophobia, discrimination and human trafficking are some of the main dangers migrants face, especially if they are illegal migrants.

An estimated 6 million people from Latin America and the Caribbean have migrated within the region and some 25 million have migrated to the United States and Europe.

Ensuring access to the right to an identity at the time of birth, and avoiding the detention of migrant children and adolescents due to their illegal entry to a country are among the other recommendations set out in the study.

Read more by HS News Staff →

 The last installment of the Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn is currently being shot in Brazil, but some residents are not happy to see their hometown being turned into a movie set and took actions into their own hands on Sunday.
 
Locals set fire to a porta-potty used by the film crew before taking to the streets to express their fury at the restricted access to their homes due to filming.
 
This is not the first incident to slow down and endanger the production, during the last days of August a hostage situation in a hotel in the city of Sao Conrado made producers reconsider locations; the local government had to take extra security measures to keep Summit Entertainment interested in completing the movie in Rio, a multimillion dollar operation.

Read more by HS News Staff →