PUERTO RICO

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PUERTO RICO
One World Many Voices
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QUICK FACTS

• Located in the Caribbean
• Island between the Caribbean Sea and the North
  Atlantic Ocean
  
• Capital San Juan
• Tropical Marine Climate
• Mostly mountains with sandy beaches along most
  coastal areas
  
• Population of 3.9 million people
• Spoken language of Spanish and English
• (www.cia.gov)

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QUCICK FACTS

• Chief of State President George W. Bush
• Head of Government Governor Anibal Acevedo-Vila
• History The US invaded Puerto Rico during the
  Spanish American War and ended the Spanish rule.
  With American administration Puerto Rico
  prospered and continue to favor the parties that
  support the US (CIA.gov)
• It is a self-governing commonwealth of the United
  States

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The media!

• Broadcasting is regulated by the FCC (BBC.com)
• The Press El Nuevo Dia, Primera Hora, El Vocero
  de Puerto Rico, The San Juan Star
  
• Television Telemundo, Televicentro, Univision,
  TUTV
  
• Radio WIAC Radio Puerto Rico, WIPR Radio
  940, WPRM Cadena Salsoul

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Recent news!!

• Culture
• Puerto Rico has always been a large provider and
  cultivator of coffee beans, but after the large
  amounts of rain and hurricanes they have
  encountered over the past year their crop has
  nearly been destroyed. They plan to bounce back
  from this devastation and use welfare recipients
  and prison inmates to harvest the coffee beans
  and start to restore the crop. (www.endi.com)

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News flash!!

• It has always been a Caribbean tradition to learn
  to music and dance styles, as well as carrying on
  the customary dances of the salsa, meringue, and
  reggae. Mixing all of these together has led to
  the recent craze of Reggaeton. Reggae is said to
  have first arrived in Jamaica and then burst into
  the Puerto Rican scene, mixed with Latin beats,
  to create the new hype. Wells describes reggaeton
  as becoming something of a national obsession
  and is extremely important in their culture.
  People driving in cars, television stations, and
  radio play it constantly. Many of the most
  popular reggaeton stars have played in New York
  Citys Madison Square Garden.
• The music is a large component in Puerto Rican
  life, but not everyone there is in favor of the
  newly rising reggaeton culture. Some people claim
  it is portrayal of women as sex objects and is
  taking over the youth. Although there are many
  concerns there will be no stop to growing
  business. (Wells 2005)

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Sports!

• Puerto Rican baseball has been internationally
  known for the talented baseball players they have
  produced and is extremely popular in their
  metropolitan areas. Recently, Puerto Rico was
  patiently awaiting the approval by the United
  States to be allowed to play in the World
  Baseball Classic. At first the United States
  disapproved telling the players they would not be
  involved. However, the US government announced
  that they would allow them to have a team. Puerto
  Ricos team will consists of 60 men including 38
  from the US. Although the Dominican Republic is
  the largest rival for them they faced the US in
  their first game. Sadly, they lost to the
  Dominican Republic in a recent game and wait to
  take on the Venezuelan team. (www.bbc.com)

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Local news

• On Thursday, January 25, 2006, a lady in Menonita
  Hospital died of meningitis without any of her
  five doctors diagnosing the disease. This
  incident has caused quite a stir among many
  people in the surrounding areas. One of the five
  doctors was said to have told their spokesman the
  true reason of the womans death, however did
  not specify whether or not it was for different
  causes that have not been brought to the medias
  attention. According to the president of The
  Surgeons Medical Association of Puerto Rico the
  symptoms may not have been easy to see because
  they resemble those of the flu, but others argue
  that the doctors, with over 20 years of
  experience, should have done thorough analysis of
  the woman. The investigation still continues.
  (www.endi.com)

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Local news

• In 2005 the death of Filiberto Ojeda Rios caused
  anger among of the people of Puerto Rico.
  Filiberto Ojeda Rios was wanted for a bank
  robbery in the United States during the 1980s
  and died during a gun battle at a farm house in
  Puerto Rico. This caused so many problems because
  Rios died on the island, which is a commonwealth
  territory for the United States. As a result, the
  FBI was brought under heavy critism by the people
  of Puerto Rico because of the way they decided to
  handle the capturing of Rios. The people were
  under the impression that the FBI handled things
  differently on the island and are now promised a
  detailed report on what happened exactly. (Watts
  2005)

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Politics economy

• Governor Anibal Avecedo proposed the construction
  of tourist projects to help transform the
  metropolitan into a great city. The proposal
  stated that it would carry the name The Greater
  City Metropolitans of the Caribbean. Governor
  Vila explained the disorder of the downtown
  metropolitan and that there is a great need to
  combine the private, public, and municipal state
  projects. The Metropolitan area consists of San
  Juan, Guaynabo, Bayamón, Carolina, Trujillo High
  and Caguas. The major project would be the
  transformation of the old water front to the new
  International District of Conventions. Other
  ideas include a trolley connecting with urban
  trains, a cultural district of San Juan, and a
  hospital where a new center for cancer would be
  built. (www.endi.com)

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Politics economy

• Puerto Rico, a Spanish speaking territory run by
  the United States, has quickly become the envy
  the Hispanic world. They have the ability to
  elect their own government while still enjoying
  most of the United States economic benefits. The
  power to shape Puerto Ricos government lies in
  the hands of America and their treasury.
  Communities are rising above and beyond their old
  expectations. For example, Barceloneta has been
  transformed into a leading city for the
  pharmaceutical company Pfizer this also makes it
  a high technology community. One of Barceloneta
  major exports is Viagra and they are extremely
  proud of the happiness they bring to people
  around the world. "We're in a competitive
  environment, so the answer to all that is that
  our job is to try to remain as competitive as
  possible." (www.bbc.com)

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Final analysis
Although Puerto Rico is a territory of the United
States and governed under the US constitution it
has a rich culture all of its own. Researching
news on Puerto Rico was not the easiest because
of the language barrier I encountered. There were
very few authentic English speaking newspapers I
found on the web and they reported on news we
would find here in the United States. However,
with the articles I translated I learned about
what makes Puerto Rico stand out among other
countries and the pride that they represent.
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Works cited

• El Nuevo Dia Un Gran Periodico. Jan. 2006.
  Jan.-Feb. 2006 .
  
• "Puerto Rico Rebel dies in Hideout." BBC News.
  Sept. 2005. Feb. 2006 /americas/4278232.stm.
  
• "Regions and Territories Puerto Rico." BBC News.
  2002. Jan.-Feb. 2006 .
  
• "The World Factbook Puerto Rico." Central
  Intelligence Agency. 10 Jan. 2006. Jan.- Feb.
  2006 .
  
• Watts, Simon. "FBI probes Puerto Rico shoot-out."
  BBC News. Sept. 2005. Feb. 2006
  
  .
• Wells, Matt. "Puerto Rico's Viagra town." BBC
  News. Feb. 2005. icas/4271199.stm.