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Breaking
1:52 pm
Thu November 1, 2012

Miami Marlins Choose New Manager, Again

Credit http://www.flickr.com/people/13051151@N04/
Marlins new manager Mike Redmond pictured as a player in 2000.

The Miami Marlins have chosen their new manager.

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Auditing Hate Crimes
1:35 pm
Thu November 1, 2012

South Florida Anti-Semitism Declined In 2011

Mixed Report: Anti-Semitism incidents declined in 20121 but trends remain disturbing.

Anti-Jewish behavior is at a 20-year low in the United States, according to the Anti-Defamation League's latest Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents, but the Florida numbers have barely budged.

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Opera Gone Digital
1:13 pm
Thu November 1, 2012

Florida Grand Opera Goes Digital For National Opera Week

image: Florida Grand Opera

The Florida Grand Opera has gone digital for National Opera Week.

The week celebrates the vibrance and culture of the art form in America today.  But as the FGO's approach to participating in the week illustrates, there is a marked difference in how they are working to reach new audiences, as compared to the past.

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Politics And Foul Play
11:00 am
Thu November 1, 2012

Scams And Shenanigans To Watch Out For When You Vote

Credit Columbia City Blog /Flickr
Voters need to be on the look out for political foul play as incidences of shenanigans is on the rise.

As you all head to the polls between now and next Tuesday, be vigilant for voting scams and general shenanigans.

The Associated Press reported yesterday that voters in Florida have been inundated with some foul play this election season.

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Hialeah
10:30 am
Thu November 1, 2012

School Board Member Demands Police Files On Daughter's Cop-Involved Crash Death

Credit Castillo family
Seeking Answers: Andrea Castillo, left, died after the collision with a Hialeah police car. Her mother, Susie Castillo, right, wants the department to release the files.

It was her daughter who died in the car crash. And now, Miami-Dade County School Board member Susie Castillo wants Hialeah police to release its  files on the case.

So far, no response from the department. It was a police detective who drove the other car.

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Hispanic Vote
10:00 am
Thu November 1, 2012

Cubans Are Closing Obama's Lead Among Hispanics In Florida

Credit Matt Ortega /Flickr
Obama's lead among Hispanics is strong everywhere-- except Florida.

Obama might have a sizeable lead among Hispanics nationwide-- but that doesn't seem to be the case in Florida.

Here, Obama's lead is razor thin. As Marc Caputo at The Miami Herald reports, that's because of Florida's Cuban population, which votes heavily Republican.

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South Florida's Brazilian Vote
9:32 am
Thu November 1, 2012

How To Build A Voting Bloc

Credit Ricardo Rosa
According to the American Community Survey by the U.S. Census, there are an estimated 21,000 Brazilians living in Broward County and another 12,000 in Miami-Dade.

  • An interview with Jonathan Rodrigues from the Brazilian Community Center in Deerfield Beach.

During election season, we tend to hear a lot about the Cuban vote or the Jewish vote. Both are powerful voting blocs that attract the attention—and promises—of politicians.

A young Brazilian community organizer has his eye on what he hopes will become another voting bloc.

Jonathan Rodrigues lives in Pompano Beach and volunteers at the Brazilian Community Center in Deerfield Beach. He got his undergraduate degree at the University of Chicago and spent much of his time there thinking about home—studying South Florida's Brazilian population and considering his own role in that communtity .

Rodrigues is a first-generation Brazilian American. “Historically that first generation is the generation that propels the community forward into civic engagement,” he said.

According to the American Community Survey by the U.S. Census, there are an estimated 21,000 Brazilians living in Broward County and another 12,000 in Miami-Dade. Rodrigues suspects that number is actually a lot higher.

“All you have to do is drive down Sample Road or North Federal Highway in Deerfield Beach and Pompano and you’ll see the proliferation of Brazilian small businesses.”

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News
7:50 am
Thu November 1, 2012

NEWSCAST: Millions Have Already Voted In Florida

Credit Terence Shepherd
Early voting totals continue to be strong in South Florida, but many have had to deal with long waits. The estimated wait time for these voters in Northwest Broward is 45 minutes.

State election officials say they have received just over 1 million early votes and more than 1.5 million absentee ballots. Meanwhile, election officials are visiting Palm Beach County again.  The county's election office has been plagued with printing problems on its absentee ballots.

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News
6:58 am
Thu November 1, 2012

NEWSCAST: Romney Campaigns In Miami

Credit Kenny Malone
The University of Miami was Mitt Romney's second stop following his Hurricane Sandy campaign hiatus.

Mitt Romney tries to pivot from disaster in the northeast to the final week of campaigning in Florida. Meanwhile, the death toll rises in Haiti as a result of Sandy. 

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Listen To WLRN Miami Herald News
6:54 pm
Wed October 31, 2012

NEWSCAST: Romney Holds Rally At UM

Credit klootch1 / flickr
Mitt Romney visited the University of Miami Wednesday. On Sunday, President Obama is set to campaign in Fort Lauderdale.

Mitt Romney spoke to an enthusiastic crowd of supporters Wednesday afternoon at the University of Miami.

He was joined by Senator Marco Rubio, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Congressman Connie Mack. Mack is running for the US Senate seat held by Democratic Senator Bill Nelson.

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Fries With That
4:00 pm
Wed October 31, 2012

Burger King Plans Home Delivery In Miami

Credit Wikimedia
This Won't Be Necessary: Burger King will soon offer home delivery in South Florida as it already does in Turkey.

If you're lucky enough to live within a 10-minute drive of a Burger King, your life is about to get even sweeter.

BK is rolling out a home delivery program. It starts this week with six urban restaurants in Miami and will expand gradually to about three dozen other stores in Miami-Dade and Broward counties by the end of the year.

Elaine Walker of the Miami Herald wrote about the BK Delivers program and its ground rules:

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The 2012 Ballot
12:01 pm
Wed October 31, 2012

Why Lawmakers Made Voters Wait In Line

Credit Benjamin Thompson on flickr
The Wait: Long early voting lines are the partly the result of an end-run around the Florida Supreme Court by the Legislature.

It's a compressed early voting period in Florida this year and that's one reason the lines at the polling places are so long.

But it's not the only reason.

Eleven constitutional amendments are on the ballot and each is printed in its entirety. In previous elections, voters would have to deal only with a concise 75-word summary of each proposed amendment, each rigorously vetted by the Florida Supreme Court for clarity.

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Broward Mental Health
11:00 am
Wed October 31, 2012

The Politics Of Mental Health Services In Broward

Credit Florida Department of Children and Families / www.dcf.state.fl.us
A shareholder for Concordia gave $125, 000 to Gov. Rick Scott's political action committee while DCF considered Broward Behavioral's bid for a contract.

Dan Christensen of Browardbulldog.org reported last week on some of the interesting characters that were (sort of) part of a privatization deal between the Department of Children and Families and a company in Broward.

DCF put out a bid several months ago to privatize the management of mental health and substance abuse services in Broward County.

A non-profit group called Broward Behavioral Health Coalition eventually won the $45 million deal from DCF.

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Law Enforcement
10:30 am
Wed October 31, 2012

Supreme Court To Determine Accuracy Of Police Dog Noses In Florida Drug Case

Credit National Crime Prevention Council
Infallible? One of the two Florida cases before the Supreme Court will test popular beliefs about dog noses.

Florida is back on the nation's legal map today with two cases before the U. S. Supreme Court, both of them involving police dogs whose well-trained noses led to now-controversial drug arrests.

From The Washington Post:

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Zombies
10:00 am
Wed October 31, 2012

VIDEO: Group Tells Floridians To Vote In Order To Avoid Zombie Apocalypse

Well, Happy Halloween everyone.

In the spirit of today's festivities, here is a video from Florida New Majority (they have an office here in Miami) that warns Floridians that the only way to avoid a "Romney Zombie Apocalypse" is to vote.

The group says:

In a state plagued by natural disasters, exploding pythons, and the strangest politics on the planet, Florida voters are bracing for the latest horror -- zombie apocalypse! 

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News
9:30 am
Wed October 31, 2012

Several Protest David's Cafe On Miami Beach

Credit Melissa Sanchez, El Nuevo Herald
Carlos Perez said the group will continue protesting until they recoup their wages.

David's Café in Miami Beach is a popular campaign stop for politicians. Now, it's become a site for protest.

A group of former workers claims they are owed about $70,000 in unpaid wages from a satellite location that closed in July.

Carlos Perez was among the protestors outside the main restaurant on Collins Avenue in South Beach Tuesday. He claimed its owners offered to pay a fraction of his original wages.

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News
7:56 am
Wed October 31, 2012

NEWSCAST: Early Voting A Big Hit In South Florida

Credit Jay Cuthrell (qthrul)/Flickr
Early voting continues at select locations throughout South Florida.

 Over 70,000 people in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties voted yesterday, bringing the total to over a quarter-million in the region that have cast ballots at the polls early since Saturday.

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News
7:20 am
Wed October 31, 2012

NEWSCAST: Good Night For the Heat, New Rings and Victory Over Celtics

Credit Paolo Rosa/Flickr
The Heat beat their archrivals the Celtics Tuesday night 120 to 107.

  • WLRN-Miami Herald News 6:00 AM newscast
 The Miami Heat have begun defense of their NBA title in style as South Florida airports continue to deal with the aftermath of Sandy. 

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Arts
6:00 am
Wed October 31, 2012

Why Florida Is So Scary

Florida is the setting for many mystery novels, detective novels and crime novels. 

It turns out it's also a particularly good place to set a horror novel. 

Author Brian Bandell draws on the "creepiness from the swamp" that is Florida in his new book, Mute.

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Printing Problems
2:00 pm
Tue October 30, 2012

More Ballot Problems in Palm Beach

Credit Chris Coleman/ Flickr
Palm Beach has another ballot printing error.

Palm Beach County has seen yet another printing problem during this election.

According to The Palm Beach Post, "Elections Supervisor Susan Bucher said Monday that she has been forced to send new absentee ballots to about 500 county residents because of a new printing error."

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Miami Heat Season Opener
1:18 pm
Tue October 30, 2012

Heat To Get Championship Rings, Allen To Be Part Of Awkward Sandwich

image: Ticketmaster

Tonight the NBA's reigning kings will finally be crowned.

After knocking the Oklahoma City Thunder out of the box in June, the Miami Heat will receive their championship rings tonight in Miami's American Airlines Arena.  The celebration comes before the season opening game between the Heat and the Boston Celtics.

While Lebron James has been waiting a lifetime for this moment, it's going to put new teammate Ray Allen in an awkward position.

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Voting
11:56 am
Tue October 30, 2012

Election Day Polling Location In Broward Closes

Credit Eliza Brown/ Flickr
A voting location in Broward has closed for Election Day.

A fire in the First Church of God in Broward (1242 N. Andrews Ave, Fort Lauderdale) has closed that polling location for Election Day.

Everyone who is assigned to that location will now be voting at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School located at 800 NW 13 Street.

This is a temporary change, which means no one will be issued a voting card for that precinct. Every voter in that precinct should have received a letter notifying them of this change.

If you have any questions or concerns about this change, voters are encouraged to call 954-357-7050. 

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Voting
10:30 am
Tue October 30, 2012

Why Miami's Early Voting Lines Are So Long

Credit Ashley Lopez / WLRN
Voters waiting in a two hour line to vote in Miami Dade.

This weekend, thousands of early voters in Miami stood through some very long lines.

And it looks like the line hasn't let up.

On Monday afternoon, a workday, lines where still up to four hours in Miami Dade.

At North Dade Regional Library the wait was three-and-a-half hours. At Coral Reef and West Dade Regional Library it was about three hours, as well. However, the longest lines in the county were at North Dade Regional Library, where the wait time there was a grueling four hours. 

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News
9:30 am
Tue October 30, 2012

Where The Early Voting Lines Are Shortest

The numbers suggest a lot of people are really anxious to get this voting business behind them. According to an AP report this morning, 1.9 million Floridians, about 16 percent of the electorate, have voted already.

Most of those have cast absentee ballots but about a half million have done it in person, often waiting for hours at early voting sites.

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Listen To WLRN Miami Herald News
8:05 am
Tue October 30, 2012

NEWSCAST: Strong Turnout For Early Voting

Credit Benjamin Thompson / Flickr/Creative Commons
Some voters waited up to four hours to cast a ballot.

Early voting started over the weekend, and many in south Florida stood in line for hours to cast their ballots.

By Monday, the wait times in Miami Dade hadn't changed much.

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Listen To WLRN Miami Herald News
7:02 am
Tue October 30, 2012

NEWSCAST: Sandy Grounds Hundreds Of Flights

Credit DSGray16 / Flickr/Creative Commons
Sandy flooded Battery Park in New York City.

Sandy has forced the cancelation of hundreds of flights to and from airports in South Florida.

The storm hit the northeast hard Monday making flying hazardous from Virginia to Massachusetts.

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Listen To WLRN Miami Herald News
7:06 pm
Mon October 29, 2012

NEWSCAST: Voters Face Long Lines

Credit Ashley Lopez / WLRN
Some voters waited as long as four hours to cast a ballot Monday in Miami Dade.

Some voters in Miami Dade waited in line for hours Monday for the opportunity to vote early.

We caught up with some voters in Miami Beach who used the time in line to learn more about the issues on the ballot.

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Hundreds Of Flights Are Canceled
4:38 pm
Mon October 29, 2012

Hurricane Sandy Is Parking Planes Across South Florida

Credit Hollywood-Fort Lauderdale International Airport
Hundreds of flights are canceled as Hurricane Sandy slams the Northeast.

Even though Hurricane Sandy has moved past South Florida, the region's airports continue to feel the storm's effects.

Director of Operations at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Mike Monnemacher, said 152 flights have been canceled at his airport.

"One of our larger markets for this airport is to the Northeast," Monnemacher said. " So, when we're not having any operations into the Washington all the up through Boston area, that's a significant number of aircraft. So, right now we have 35 aircraft that really don't have any place to go."

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School Nutrition
3:52 pm
Mon October 29, 2012

A Fruit Or Vegetable On Every Plate Whether Students Want It Or Not

Credit Gina Jordan / StateImpact Florida
The Evident Preference: The pizza was eaten, the broccoli wasn't.

Under new federal dietary rules, kids in school cafeteria lunch lines will be required to accept a serving of fruit or vegetables. But since there is no corresponding federal power to make them eat it, it’s likely many students will soon be defying their government at lunchtime.

StateImpact education reporter Gina Jordan has been sampling the student opinion of broccoli and peas and stuff:

“I hate them.”

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Ballot Measures
3:38 pm
Mon October 29, 2012

A Guide To Miami-Dade's Charter Amendments

Credit Fairfax County /Flickr
Here is a breakdown of the 8 charter amendments in Miami Dade.

Besides the 11 proposed amendments to the state Constitution, Miami-Dade dwellers will also be deciding the fate of 8 proposed charter amendments.

 These charter amendments are significantly shorter than the state-level changes, but there are quite a few of them-- and like most ballot measures, they can be kind of confusing. However, here is our breakdown created with the help of The Florida League of Women Voters' 2012 Voting Guide

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