The brutal killing of a bull in a popular festival in a town in northern Colombia has sparked indignation and calls for a public debate on traditions involving animal cruelty.

Animal rights activists and even some government officials are demanding legal action after a video appeared in Colombia showing dozens of people in Turbaco chasing the bull and killing it with machetes, rocks, knives and kicks. The killing took place during a "corraleja," or amateur bullfighting event held in some towns in the South American country.

Sony Corp.'s top corporate executive on Monday condemned the recent hacking assault against its film division, saying his employees were victims of a "vicious and malicious cyberattack," while adding that he's proud of them for standing against "the extortionist efforts of criminals."

CEO Kazuo Hirai, who hasn't spoken about publicly about the hack before, opened a press event at the International CES trade show in Las Vegas by saying he "would be remiss" if he didn't mention the controversy over the Sony comedy, "The Interview."

Imagine a world in which your garage door opens automatically as you pull into the driveway. The living room lights and heater turn on — perhaps the oven starts warming up, too. In the so-called "smart home," cars, appliances and other devices all have sensors and Internet connectivity to think and act for themselves, and make your life easier.

We're not there just yet, but we're getting closer.

SpaceX on Tuesday aborted its Falcon 9 rocket launch at the last minute, postponing a landmark bid to open a new era of recycling rockets by landing a key part on a platform in the Atlantic Ocean.

Potential jurors stared intently at Boston Marathon bombing defendant Dzhokhar Tsarnaev as jury selection began under tight security Monday in one the America's most closely watched terror trials in recent years.

Tsarnaev, flanked by his attorneys, sat at a table at the front of the jury assembly room. Wearing a dark sweater and khaki pants, he looked down much of the time but occasionally glanced at the potential jurors and the judge. He also picked at his shaggy beard.

The wife of a Mexican mayor whose police force turned 43 students over to a drug gang that allegedly killed them has been charged with organized crime and money laundering.

Maria de los Angeles Pineda is the wife of Jose Luis Abarca, the former mayor of Iguala, a city in southern Guerrero state. Pineda's brothers were leading members of the Guerreros Unidos drug gang, according to prosecutors. Federal prosecutor Tomas Zeron said Monday that Pineda has been charged with organized crime related to drug trafficking, and use of illicit funds.

Hollywood kicked off the New Year on a positive note, with three films vying closely for the weekend box-office title that nevertheless remained with "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" for the third straight week.

Peter Jackson's Middle-earth finale took in $21.9 million for Warner Bros. in North American theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday, narrowly edging out the Disney musical "Into the Woods" ($19.1 million) and Angelina Jolie's World War II survival tale "Unbroken" ($18.4 million) from Universal.

The first star-studded film-award ceremony of the new year was literally something to sing about.

While not an honoree himself, actor-producer Brad Pitt stole the spotlight with a sing-along for a few moments Saturday night at the annual black-tie gala for the Palm Springs International Film Festival.

Mark Zuckerberg wants to add a little more "book" to Facebook.

The Facebook founder and CEO announced on his page recently that he has vowed to read a book every other week in 2015, with an emphasis on learning about different beliefs, cultures and technologies.

New York hip-hop artist Joey Bada$$ has been charged in an Australian court with assaulting a security guard before a performance last week, officials said Monday.

The 19-year-old Brooklyn performer was headed for the stage at the Falls Music and Arts Festival near the tourist town of Byron Bay in New South Wales state on Friday when he was asked by a 20-year-old security guard to prove his identity, police said in a statement.