HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.

(THEME)

This is Doug Johnson.

On our show this week: music bycountry singer Gretchen Wilson.

And a question about the nickname of former President RonaldReagan.

But first, we report about blogs.

Blogs

HOST:

Do you know what a "blogger" is? Well, here is Shep O'Neal totell us.

ANNCR:

A "blogger" is a person who writes on an Internet computer Website called a "blog." The word "blog" is a short way of saying Weblog, or personal Web site. Anyone can start a blog, and they canwrite about anything they like.

There are millions of blogs on the Internet today. They providenews, information and ideas to the many people who read them. Theycontain links to other Web sites. And they provide a place forpeople to write their ideas and react to the ideas of others.

A research company called Perseus has studied more thanthree-thousand Web logs. It says that blogs are most popular withteenage girls. They use them to let their friends know what ishappening in their lives. The study also says that more thanone-hundred-thousand bloggers stopped taking part in the activityafter a year.

However, some people develop serious blogs to present politicaland other ideas. For example, the Republican and Democratic partiesin the southern state of Kentucky recently started their own blogs.And American companies are beginning to use blogs to advertise theirproducts.

At the same time, some long-standing blogs have ended. Last week,blogging leader Dave Winer closed his free blog service,weblogs.com. He says the site became too costly to continue. Hestarted the blog four years ago, and thousands of people had writtenon it. They are now upset because they did not know that the sitewas closing.

One blog that is still going strong is called Rebecca's Pocket.Rebecca Blood created the Web site in nineteen-ninety-nine. Shewrote about the history of blogs on the site. That article led to abook called "The Weblog Handbook." It has been translated into fourlanguages so far.

Mizz Blood says Rebecca's Pocket gets about thirty-thousandvisitors a month. She writes about anything and everything --politics, culture and movies. She recently provided medical advice.And she wrote about how to prevent people from stealing money fromon-line bank accounts.

'The Gipper'

HOST:

Our VOA listener question this week comes from N'Djamena, Chad.Awada Ehemir asks about the meaning of the phrase "the Gipper", usedto describe former President Ronald Reagan.

President Reagan died earlier this month. He was called "theGipper" by many announcers broadcasting his funeral on television.The explanation goes back to Mister Reagan's early years inHollywood, California, before he entered politics.

Ronald Reagan moved to Hollywood from the American middle westand became a movie star. He appeared in about fifty movies,including "King's Row," "Bedtime For Bonzo" and "Hellcats of theNavy." But he became known as "the Gipper" because of a real personhe played in a movie.

The real life "Gipper" was named George Gipp. He played footballat the University of Notre Dame in Indiana from nineteen-seventeento nineteen-twenty. He was one of the best college football playersever. But his story was a sad one. George Gipp developed a throatinfection during one of his final football games at Notre Dame. Hedied a few weeks later, at the age of twenty-five.

Before dying, he told his football coach what to do when the teamwas in danger of losing. He said to tell the team to "win one forthe Gipper." Eight years later, when Notre Dame was in danger oflosing a game, Coach Knute Rockne told the players the story of theGipper. And the team won the game.

In nineteen-forty, Hollywood made a movie about the famous NotreDame coach. It was called "Knute Rockne-All American." Ronald Reaganplayed the part of George Gipp. In the movie, he speaks those famouswords just before he dies.

AUDIO: " ... ask them to go in there with all they got, win justone for the Gipper."

After the movie was made, two men were known as "the Gipper" --George Gipp and Ronald Reagan. And the words, "win one for theGipper," later became Ronald Reagan's political battle cry.

Gretchen Wilson

HOST:

One of the most popular new country singers in the United Statestoday is Gretchen Wilson. She tells about herself on her new album,"Here for the Party." It has sold more than one-million copies sinceits release last month. Gwen Outen has more.

ANNCR:

Gretchen Wilson was born in nineteen-seventy-three in a smalltown called Pocahontas in the middle western state of Illinois. Shegrew up poor, and without a father. She tells about her hometown inthis song, "Pocahontas Proud."

(MUSIC)

The first hit song from Gretchen Wilson's new album is "RedneckWoman." "Redneck" is a slang word used to describe a poor whiteperson in the southern United States. The term is sometimes used asan insult but often used with pride. The song tells us even moreabout Gretchen Wilson.

(MUSIC)

Critics have praised "Here for the Party" as a great first album.And they expect more fresh country sounds from Gretchen Wilson inthe future. We leave you now with the title song from her new album,"Here for the Party."

(MUSIC)

HOST:

This is Bob Doughty.

Our program was written by Nancy Steinbach. Paul Thompson was ourproducer. And our engineer was Roy Benson.

I hope you enjoyed AMERICAN MOSAIC. Join us again next week forVOA's radio magazine in Special English