Schwarzenegger was right …

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Arnold Schwarzenegger’s comment this week about immigrants and Spanish television pissed off a lot of proud Latinos and unleashed a series of online (and off line) bashing against the Governator. And because the incident was widely covered, I decided not to blog about it … until now.

On Friday afternoon I turned down an opportunity to go live on national TV to “defend” Spanish-language television during a small debate organized as a result of the brouhaha. My friend, a Washington, D.C.-based entrepreneur and media personality called and asked if I would be interested in taking up the challenge.

Though I ended up not doing it, the possibility got me thinking: how on earth could I go on national television to defend the indefendible? Could I actually make myself available to say publicly that my fellow Latinos (documented or not) should watch Univision and Telemundo?

While I might not agree with the reasons given by Mr. Schwarzenegger for Latinos to turn off Spanish-language TV, I would very strongly encourage them to do so … simply for mental health reasons.

$4.4 billion worth of pupusas

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Hoping to change the negative perception some Long Island residents have about the growing Latino community, a pro-immigrant group there this week launched a new advertising campaign, financed by the Horace Hagedorn Foundation. The spots –one of which tries hard to be witty– began airing on Thursday in several Long Island cable stations.

Interestingly, one of the spots revolves around pupusas, as in the Salvadorean tortilla-like corn snack. The pitch? Immigrants contribute with an estimated $4.4 billion to Long Island’s economy. As the commercial states in the end: That’s a whole lot of pupusas.

Long Island Wins –

Piolín goes to Washington

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Univision Radio personality Eddie “Piolín” Sotelo did achieve his goal of gathering over one million letters in support of the passage of a “fair and just” immigration reform bill.

And now, he is taking them to Washington.

“Por la Reforma Migratoria con Piolín,” as the latest pro-immigration campaign is known, included a caravan that departed Wednesday from Los Angeles and is arriving today in Washington, D.C., where Piolín is expected to hand-deliver the letters to members of the Senate and House, including Senator Kennedy, Senator Martinez and Senator Menendez.

Sending off the caravan, known as “Dreams Across America,” was Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony, a longtime supporter of immigrant rights.

Univision has even set up a dedicated blog where users can join the “pioli-caravana” as it travels to its destiny.

One can only hope that those traveling with Piolín have their papers in order, as the much publicized event lately has been the center of attention of everybody, including immigrant busters.

Bolivian president challenges FIFA

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Who says you cannot play soccer de altura?

To contest FIFA’s decision to prohibit international tournaments and World Cup qualifying matches above 8,200 feet (2,500 meters), Bolivian president Evo Morales (shown in green in this AP photo) this week played two soccer matches –one at 6,000 meters (19,700 feet) above sea level, and another one at 5,580– in an improvised field on top of el nevado de Sajama, near the Chilean border.

As most Latin American soccer fans know, FIFA’s decision rules out the capitals of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and the stadiums of leading teams in Peru, Chile and Mexico.

War troubles? try sweetening them up with Splenda

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Spanish-language media in the U.S. have never been very good at news analysis; let alone at taking a stand for -or against- issues other than immigration. But when it comes to pairing products and services with heart-wrenching, novela-like programming, Hispanic television is an indisputable leader.

Take the Iraq war and last night’s Soñando Contigo one-hour special on Univision.

Producers of the show brought in U.S. Army Sgt. Rogelio Paredes before being shipped out for his third tour of duty in Iraq. The occasion? to renew his wedding vows on national television, and in front of a live audience. All of this, of course, was made possible by Univision and Splenda … Yep, as in the non-sugar sweetener made by McNeil Nutritionals.

In addition to the public ceremony, Sgt. Paredes’ received a “fantasy getaway” for his immediate family in -where else?- Las Vegas; and to top it all of: a lavish wedding cake sweetened with -what else?- Splenda.

How sweet is that?

I did see the show but in case you missed it, you can read the details in an incredibly long press release.

Why Hispanic media loves “Danny”

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You gotta acknowledge Spanish-language media for their relentless coverage of all things Latino in the U.S.

After an exhaustive weekend coverage of the Puerto Rican parade in New York City, Monday’s evening Spanish-language newscasts opened with –what else?– Danny Olivas’ walk on space.

See, it’s not only because Danny is one of the few fortunate ones to have gone on a spacewalk … ever. As luck has it, his grandparents happened to be born in Chihuahua, Mexico, which gives him an enviable spot in the attention of Hispanic media.

Univision news anchor Enrique Gratas last night went as far as to close the segment with the following remark: “It was one small step for Danny Olivas, and a giant leap for the Hispanic community.”

Why? … I wonder.

A blogger’s view of the immigration issue

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I don’t visit Spanish-language blogs, mainly because I don’t know many. But one recently caught my attention, especially because the recent publication of the following cartoon stirred many passions, mainly from Latin Americans living in the U.S.

What’s interesting though is that the author of the posting makes a good point: the above behavior is not exclusive to the United States; rather, he says, it’s the immigration policy of the fools.

Corona drinkers of the world, beware!

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Can you tell the difference between these two bottles?

It took me a while, actually. But it turns out the Chinese are producing -and exporting- Cerono beer, which looks and feels exactly like Grupo Modelo’s Corona beer. (Of course, the real one is quite tasteless but that’s not the point here).

Mexican anti-piracy authorities are fuming over Beijing-based Beijing Cerono Trade Limited Company, which last year sold more than one million cases of Cerono worldwide.

The problem does not stop there. The Chinese apparently have also come up with their own brand of “tequila” called Platinum Tequila Infusión, which is also being exported to the United States with the label “Made in Mexico.”

Univision ‘spices up’ board of directors

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Univision’s board of directors is ready for a taste of salsa. Cuba-born Gloria Estefan has just been named to Univision Communication Inc.’s newly configured board of directors.

Joining the Latin crossover sensation is Henry Cisneros, former mayor of San Antonio and former president and COO of the network.

Looking at the rest of the list, comprised by CEO Joe Uva and representatives from each one of the private-equity firms involved in the buyout, I cannot help but wonder: what exactly do Estefan and Cisneros bring to the table? Perhaps, as my friend says, it’s more the desire to pick a high profile Cuban-American and Mexican-American for the board. ¿Será?

La Doña goes on sale in New York

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Clothes, furniture, paintings, jewelry and film memorabilia which belonged to Mexican screen legend María Félix next month will be auctioned in New York City by renowned auction house Christie’s.

The auction comprises over 600 lots, and it includes a Leonora Carrington portrait of María Félix that has never been publicly exhibited and is expected to fetch at least $500,000.

What bidders can expect to find:

–60 paintings, many of which are portraits of La Doña by artists such as Leonora Carrington, Diego Rivera and Antoine Tzapoff.

–Her first piece of Jacob Petit porcelain, a gift from her brother.

–30 lots of Christian Dior

–A pair of gold and turquoise enamel oversize snake earrings by Cartier (starting price: $5,000-$7,000)

–Ariel awards from her acclaimed films Rio Escondido (1948) and Enamorada (1946): $2,000-$3,000 each.

We can only wonder who will bid how much for which piece during the July auction. Stay tuned!

Pachuca Pac-Man Pro

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You might not care to hear about this, but Daniel Borrego, a 27-year-old Mexican this week was crowned the first-ever X-box 360 Pac-Man World Champion.

The Pachuca, Hidalgo native beat nine other finalists during a tournament held Tuesday in New York City. Competing in a final round, Borrego scored 222,160 points vs. 177,730 of Austrian gamer Robert Glashuettner.

The prize? a one-of-a-kind Pac-Man-inspired Xbox 360, with which he can keep improving his gaming skills.

Well, what else can you wish for when living in the Bella Airosa?

Candidates not ‘hot’ about debating in Spanish

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Earlier this week Univision made headlines by inviting the presidential hopefuls from both parties to take part in what would become the nation’s first Spanish-language presidential debate. But as it turns out, most have either turned down the invitation or are still “checking their schedules.”

According to the Miami Herald, Hillary Clinton has said she will have to turn down the invitation. Tom Tancredo, who last year said Miami was a “thirld world country” has said he is definitely not attending.

In fact, only the two Democratic contenders fluent in Spanish — Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico and U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut — committed to going to Miami in September for the debates.

I wonder if their command of the language was the deal breaker… That would be a terrific pitch for a Spanish tutor moving forward.

When soccer calls, America watches

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Trivia. What was the most watched TV show -among all U.S. broadcast networks- on the night of May 27 among all men ages 18-34?

Answer: the Mexican League Soccer final match pitching Pachuca vs. America, which was broadcast live by Azteca America and viewed by 2.2 million people in the United States.

In a statement the network said today that, following actual live start and end times, Nielsen revised its count to 2.2 million, up from the 1.9 million thought to have originally viewed the game. According to the new ratings, the Pachuca-America match attracted 1% more male 18-34 viewers than ABC’s May 26 NBA Conference Finals playoff match; 10% more than FOX’s Nascar Nextel Cup on May 26; over 40% more than ABC’s Indy 500 Race aired on May 26; and over 70% more than FOX’s Saturday Baseball Game of the Week on May 26.

As the originator of the missive said: “It may be time to reconsider America’s national pastimes.”

Geography lessons from Expedia.com

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In a recent marketing pitch, Internet travel agency Expedia.com urges visitors to rush as there are only 3 days left to get “rock-bottom fares to Central and South America” flying with Taca.

The funny thing, though, is that the image Expedia picked to promote flights to Central and South America is a photo of the ancient Atlantes de Tula, the Toltec ruins located in the Mexican state of Hidalgo.

What’s more, once you scroll down the promotional newsletter, you’ll find Expedia is also inviting you to save while traveling to the following cities: Ecuador, Costa Rica, Guatemala and … wait, here’s the best one: Columbia. Not only none of the places mentioned above are cities, but Columbia? …

Some people would let this go without an itch, but not my friend Carlos, who actually sent Expedia an email pointing out the geographical inaccuracies in the newsletter. Expedia’s reply is only funnier than the original pitch:

“Thank you for contacting us about incorrect spelling. We regret that your experience with Expedia.com was not satisfying.”

Preparing for life after Fidel

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As NBC’s Today host Matt Lauer prepares to broadcast live from Havana on Tuesday June 5, some disturbing details regarding a Cuba after Fidel have started to emerge.

For starters, according to an article by TodayShow.com contributor Peter Greenberg, all U.S. cruise lines are already preparing for Life after Castro. After all, he says, they are already floating hotels. For their part, U.S. hotel companies have been “prospecting”, doing handshake deals on properties throughout the island, signing quiet conditional deals to kick in the minute things change and they are allowed to do business.

NBC’s special Cuba coverage includes an online poll asking U.S. citizens if they would consider a Havana holiday should there be no traveling ban: at 10:00 PM (ET) Monday night, 42% had said: “No. There are other countries I’d rather give my money to.” What it’s not clear to me is: Doesn’t the question pertain to Havana only? What if these people are actually inclined to spend their money in, say, Varadero?

The TodayShow.com coverage also includes an invitation for visitors to pose questions to Lauer about Cuba. I have submitted mine, and cannot wait for the answer. Stay tuned.