CNN Domestic tonight debuts the latest installment of its "In America" series, with Soledad O'Brien reporting the story of female flyweight fighter Marlen Esparza, after the International Olympic Committee allowed the last female sport excluded from the games, women’s boxing, to be added to the 2012 London games. Details from CNN below.

CNN Press Release: CNN Takes on Female Boxing – the Last Frontier of the Olympics – in New Latino in America Documentary

CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien traces the U.S. Olympic dreams of female flyweight fighter Marlen Esparza. The International Olympic Committee has finally allowed women’s boxing for the 2012 games, the last female sport excluded from the world’s most prestigious sporting competition. The one-hour documentary reflects the lives of girls who typically box in this country – generally young women from ‘blue collar’ backgrounds, often women of color who must focus and train against a backdrop of challenging family struggles. Frequently, they must also fight for acceptance in their communities for their competition in traditionally a man’s sport, as a pathway to success for themselves and their families, and positive recognition for their communities.



For In Her Corner: Latino in America, O’Brien profiles Houston-based, Mexican-American fighter Esparza. Esparza aims to push aside negative stereotypes of her community, while pursuing her dream to represent America for Olympic Gold. In Her Corner debuts on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 8:00pm ET and PT, and replays Saturday, Oct. 1 at 8:00pm ET and PT.

Mentally and physically strong, tough, beautiful and smart, at age 11, Esparza fell in love with a sport traditional Latino communities frequently don’t approve of for girls: she loves to box. She is fully focused on being a part of her sport’s historic entry into the 2012 Olympics – and coming back to the U.S. with Olympic Gold. At age 21, Esparza has focused on boxing for a decade – winning her first national championship at age 16, she has shunned friends, boyfriends, and even deferred college for boxing. There are just five phone numbers programmed into her mobile phone: her mother, father, two siblings and her coach. Esparza is known as a ‘pressure fighter’ – a boxer who aggressively pursues her opponents in the ring for unqualified victories. Now, a five-time national champion, Esparza hits so quickly and so hard that she has to spar with men – even at only 112 pounds.

“I want to put a stamp on it – ‘this is Marlen’s’,” she says in the documentary. “When they raise my hand, that’s definitely my favorite part.”

At the age of 12, Esparza asked Rudy Silva to be her coach. A cop by day and boxing trainer at night, Silva patrols a mostly-Latino high school known for high rates drop-outs and gang members. He insists the kids at his gym be strong students, and at night trains several dozen kids, including his own 10-year-old son. The goal is to graduate – and boxing seems to encourage winning in the classroom and in the ring. Although initially Silva was reluctant to train a female boxer, he eventually grew to appreciate her persistence and natural talent.

Silva says, “I actually tried for about two weeks to break her...I was pushing her so hard...In a few weeks, I was making some of the guys quit!” He continued, “This girl is going to make it ... she has the heart of a champion.”

David and Carmen Esparza, Esparza’s parents, are her biggest fans. By her side and cheering her on at every match, her father is surprised to see their daughter do something he always wanted for his sons. Reluctant at first to get behind his daughter’s ambitions, he now thinks she is the next Julio Cesar Chavez, making great sacrifices to pay for a sport with little financial backing.

Carmen Esparza and her daughter work side-by-side at a dental office to support her family and help fund her boxing efforts. Though her mother wanted her to want to be a doctor, she supports Esparza’s dreams.

Standing in Esparza’s way though are her fellow competitors who share her Olympic aspirations. Chief among them is Cristina Cruz, a brassy, easy-going, 23-year-old Puerto Rican Latina from Hell’s Kitchen raised by her grandparents with a formerly-incarcerated mother who is in and out of her life.

Cruz says, “I wake up every day thinking about it...This is a sport: someone has to lose,” as she and Esparza separately begin their paths towards the 2012 Olympic games in qualifying competitions in Colorado Springs, home of the U.S. Olympic team.

O’Brien tracks their training, their competitions, watching them inspire each other – and the families, communities, and fans that are following them along the way.

Additional reporting and video excerpts from In Her Corner: Latino in America can be found at www.cnn.com/inamerica. CNN Student News is producing an Educator and Parent Guide for the documentary, which will include discussion questions and a learning activity.

CNN Press Release - New “…in America” Documentary Series Debuts on CNN and CNN en Español on Oct. 21& 22

CNN will extend its acclaimed “…in America” series of documentaries with a two-night, four-hour event, Latino in America, this October. Reported by anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien, the ambitious documentary initiative examines the growing diversity of America, revealing insight into a changing nation on the eve of the U.S. census that is expected to officially confirm that Latino Americans are the largest minority group within the country.

Two, two-hour documentaries will air at 8p.m. and 11p.m. ET and PT and simulcast in English on CNN/U.S. and in Spanish on CNN en Español on Oct. 21 and Oct. 22; CNN International will also broadcast the series (date and time to be announced). Latino in America was filmed in high definition. “As the face of America changes profoundly, CNN continues to demonstrate that we are the only cable news network dedicated to delivering a diversity of opinions and coverage,” said Jon Klein, president CNN/U.S. “This landmark series will showcase dramatic personal stories from across the sweep of Latino-American society, and move the dialogue well beyond limited partisan discussions of immigration.”

Latino in America: Los Garcias – Wednesday, Oct. 21, 8 p.m. & 11 p.m. (two hours) ET/PT

“Garcia” is now one of the top ten most popular surnames in the country, a sign of the largest ethnic wave in America’s history. For the debut evening of CNN’s Latino in America, O’Brien interviews Garcias from all walks of life. They hail from a broad array of nations; some families are new arrivals to America – others have been Americans for many generations. Old, young, wealthy and poor, Latinos are the fastest-growing minority group in America. O’Brien’s lens on the Garcias yields a window into American life that viewers will find both new and very familiar at the same time.

One Garcia viewers will meet is Cindy Garcia, a 17-year old high schooler living in Greater Los Angeles. Cindy has a close and loving family, but like many Latina teens she is also facing challenges beyond her years. Her mother, originally from Guatemala, speaks no English and depends upon Cindy for translation assistance for medical appointments and other personal business. Cindy is often asked to babysit for the children of her siblings, even taking them to school with her; and she struggles with the added burden of an unplanned pregnancy. Most of Cindy’s family and friends never graduated from high school, and an astounding 70 percent of her fellow students drop out before graduation, but Cindy tells O’Brien that she is determined to graduate. The first evening follows Cindy’s journey.

Throughout Night One in the series, viewers will also hear from several accomplished Latinos about the American experience of being Latinos including, comedian George Lopez, and actors Lupe Ontiveros, Jesse Garcia, Edward James Olmos and Eva Longoria Parker.

Latino in America: Chasing the Dream – Thursday, Oct. 22, 8 p.m. & 11 p.m. (two hours) ET/PT

The second documentary in the two-night series focuses on a journey as old as the nation – the pursuit of the American Dream. O’Brien interviews Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.), who fled communist Cuba at age 15. Martinez recalls his own American Dream journey – from his first humble nights on the floor of a welcoming Catholic church in Miami, learning English and achieving undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Florida, becoming a U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and finally becoming a U.S. Senator.

O’Brien also speaks with Carlos Robles. Since he is from Puerto Rico, he is an American citizen, but he has found transition to life in Florida a challenge so far. A police officer in Puerto Rico, Carlos’ dream is to become a sheriff in Orlando. But he struggles with English, and he is worried that his language skills may interfere with or delay his dream.

In Shenandoah, Pa., O’Brien discovers a dream denied. Luis Ramirez was killed by a group of white high school students – allegedly only because of his ethnicity. Ramirez was an illegal immigrant from Mexico, and his death and the ensuing trial have been a lightning rod for long-building tensions in the community over dwindling jobs, crime and a melding of cultures that has not always been seamless.

On the other end of the spectrum, Vanessa Rosas, also from Puerto Rico, has flourished. Fluent in Spanish and English, her young children are also bilingual and Rosas and her husband – both engineers – live an affluent life in Florida as Disney employees. Rosas and her husband observe traditional Puerto Rican customs and celebrations and have also adopted those of the mainland. They are perhaps a bridge to a nation growing in Latino diversity.

“Soledad will give viewers new insight into an American story that they may have thought that they understood. There is so much to learn about the changing landscape of America – and we’re delivering it just as the nation confirms its new demographics and all of the promise – and challenges that will come with that,” said Mark Nelson, vice president and senior executive producer, CNN Productions.

About CNN Productions
Latino in America is produced by CNN Productions, the most award-winning documentary unit in cable news. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences recently announced that it will honor CNN Productions with the President’s Award at its ceremonies in September. Mark Nelson is the vice president and senior executive producer for the unit; Kathy Slobogin is managing editor for CNN Productions; Rose Arce and Catherine Mitchell are senior producers; Brian Rokus, Emily Probst, Kimberly Arp-Babbit, and Robert Howell are producers; Jody Gottlieb is the executive director for CNN Productions.

About CNN Worldwide
CNN Worldwide, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner Company, is the most trusted source for news and information. Its reach extends to nine cable and satellite television networks; one private place-based network; two radio networks; wireless devices around the world; CNN Digital Network, the No. 1 network of news Web sites in the United States; CNN Newsource, the world’s most extensively syndicated news service; and strategic international partnerships within both television and the digital media.

Following last year’s successful Black In America documentary series, CNN will turn its cameras on America’s Latino community with the two-part documentary series Latino In America premiering in October.

Read more at Multichannel.com >

“IN AMERICA is in-depth, investigative reporting on the stories of America in all its diversity. Black, or brown, or white, these are stories that matter to all Americans.” Soledad O’Brien

LATINOS ARE CHANGING AMERICA AND AMERICA IS CHANGING LATINOS.

The Latino population is America’s largest minority and is projected to nearly triple by 2050. Latino immigrants come from at least 20 different countries. They’re not one race or one color. They don’t have a single religion. They fly the stars and stripes and the flag of their home country. Some struggle with English, others don’t speak Spanish.

There are literally hundreds of ways to describe being “Latino in America.” However defined, the sheer number of Latinos is shaking up America, reshaping schools, churches and neighborhoods. Latinos are forcing a nation of immigrants to rediscover what it means to be American.

This October, CNN’s portfolio of news brands and its Award winning documentary unit to report on Latinos in America like no other new organization can. Soledad O’Brien will take viewers inside this complex, dynamic community for a comprehensive, in-depth look at how Latinos are changing America and how America is changing them. This four-hour special will air late October.