Georgia Gazette Wednesday, Apr. 30

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Protecting Georgia’s children against child abuse: a new report by the Washington, D.C.-based Kids First and the University of San Diego's Children's Advocacy Institute titled "State Secrecy and Child Deaths in the U.S." says the state isn’t doing enough to release information. We get a response from the State Department of Human Resources -- that protecting information is in the best interest of survivors of child abuse. Then, Democratic State Senator Regina Thomas makes an intra-party stir by announcing her candidacy for Congress. She is challenging another Democrat -- John Barrow. In today's flashback to Georgia history, we recall a deadly tornado that Warner Robins in Middle Georgia will not long forget. 19 people were killed, with 300 injured. In part two of our show ... we sit down with Atlanta author Pearl Cleage. She discusses her new book "Seen It All and Done the Rest." Next, the University of Georgia marks a record year of deaths in its Athens community -- 24 students and 13 staff members. Commentator Robert Williams recalls his experience cherishing a friend after an unexpected death.

Georgia Gazette Tuesday, April 29

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. We open the show focusing on a controversy over plans to expand a nuclear energy plant near Augusta. Why neighbors are both for and against building two new reactors at Plant Vogtle in Waynesboro. Then, why Georgia's photo ID law still faces attack even though the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a similar law in Indiana this week. We speak with the sponsor of Georgia's bill - Cecil Staton (R) Macon and Robert Shapiro of Emory University Law School. This presidential election year, race has become a main theme with Democratic Senator Barack Obama as possible candidate for the nation's first black President. Georgia Gazette Commentator Ed Grisamore muses on the meaning of being colorblind. In the second half of the show ... green burials approved in Middle Georgia. Macon-Bibb County gives the green light to a green cemetery even though neighbors of the proposed site near Macon say putting bodies directly into the ground could pollute groundwater. Next, a story from GPB's Sustainability Desk -- why swapping seeds helps the environment. Got plans to vacation in your camper this summer? What rising gas prices mean for R.V.’ers. And then we sit down with author Sarah Gordon on a new collaboration "Literary Guide to Flannery O’Connor’s Georgia."

Georgia Gazette Monday April 28

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Sign-up starts today for future political candidates. Hear minority Democrats' new strategy for gaining seats and ruling Republicans' response. How people who make methamphetamine are getting around new laws meant to crack down on the drug. Plus, meth's devastating impact on Georgia’s children. Then, University of Georgia and NFL football legend Hershel Walker talks about his new book "Breaking Free" about his lifelong battle with mental illness. Next on the show ... a new Georgia Gazette Riddle and your chance to win a year membership to Friends of Georgia State Parks. Then, the clock is ticking as the nation's television programs prepare to go all-digital -- do you have to buy a new TV? We get answers from Gillian Gonda, GPB's Television Program Manager. We also have details on how to get a $40 coupon toward a digital converter for your analogue television. Learn more at www.dtv2009.gov. Oscar the Alligator gets his due honor at the Okefenokee Swamp Museum in Waycross. The beloved gator's bones are being re-constructed -- like a dinosaur's -- for exhibit at the park's museum. And we hear from Rome chef Lance Lombard in the latest installment of our series Artists in their Own Words.

Georgia Gazette Friday, Apr. 25

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Dipping into your 401(k) for a personal loan: why many Georgians are part of the nationwide trend. Then, a glimpse of daily life aboard a floating city. We chat with filmmakers Maro Chermayeff and Jeff Dupre about their new documentary "Carrier" which goes inside life on the U.S.S. Nimitz during a six-month tour in the Persian Gulf. "Carrier" premiers on GPB Television at 9pm on Sunday, April 27th. The good, the bad and the ugly -- we read from your e-mails. You can send us an e-mail any time to gazette@gpb.org. Next up on the show ... the 5th annual cycling race the Tour de Georgia wraps up Sunday. Details on the event's economic boon to local communities. For a uniquely urban cycling event, the 29th annual Twilight Criterium is this weekend in Athens. We hear from event director Gene Dixon about why this race is serious fun. And we travel to coastal Georgia for a tour of the Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation --the answer of this week’s Georgia Gazette Quiz. Congratulations to this week's winner Kristin Nielson of Athens. She wins a family membership to "Friends of Georgia State Parks." Find out more about this organizaton at www.friendsofgastateparks.org.

Georgia Gazette Thursday, Apr. 24

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. We open the show with controversy over a gun bill that's only the Governor's signature away from becoming law in Georgia. Why Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin and dozens of other local leaders gathered today to oppose HB 89. Then, in north Georgia's White County, neighbors of LHR Farms pass a hurdle in their fight to close the septic waste treatment plant. The group says the facility is polluting their groundwater. Another chance to answer this week's Georgia Gazette riddle and win a yearly pass to the group "Friends of Georgia State Parks." The pass includes free parking at state parks and other discounts and amenities. Next on the show ... a rough-and-tumble look at roller derby in Savannah. Our play-by-play visit to the season opener of the Savannah Derby Devils. As the school year winds down, the season for school pranks gears up -- how a zebra named Barcode is faring after winding up in a college building this week. The Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra takes the stage tonight on the ASO on GPB broadcast. We have a preview from host Sarah Zaslaw. The ASO on GPB airs Thursdays at 8PM on your GPB station. And finally, your chance to win free tickets to a concert at this weekend's Second Annual String Band Festival of Gordon in Calhoun.

Georgia Gazette Wednesday, Apr. 23

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Delta Air Lines takes a $6.4 billion hit in the first quarter of 2008. That could mean a spike in fares -- how that might lead to lower profits for companies that fly with Delta. Where organic food is becoming part of everyday college life -- the “greening” of Wesleyan College in Macon. Georgia Gazette commentator Stephanie Tames reminds us why forest fires are also good for the environment. We chat with Georgia filmmaker Michael Jordan, whose new documentary "Ships for Victory" profiles two Georgia shipyards that helped boost the nation's Navy fleet during WWII. "Ships for Victory" premiers tomorrow at 7 PM on GPB Television. And we visit one of Georgia's unique instruments -- the carillon at Stone Mountain Park -- and chat with Mable Sharp, who plays live concerts there every weekend.

Georgia Gazette Riddle for April 21-25

Margaret Mitchell would sit at the table
At this house on the coast where rice was a staple

Miss Ophelia was known for her dairy
The name's hard to say but not very

It sounds like a breakfast with maple

The winner receives a one-year membership to "Friends of Georgia State Parks."It includes free parking, and other discounts.

Send your answers to our e-mail address at gazette@gpb.org. You MUST include your name and address. We will post this riddle on-line as well. You have until Friday to solve it. Good luck.

Georgia Gazette Tuesday, April 22

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Getting paid to study ... inside a new program that pays students $8 an hour to get extra homework help. Standardized testing is going on all week in the state's public schools. We chat with Principal of Tutt Middle School in Augusta, Debbie Alexander, whose school is already on the federal government's "Needs Improvement" list. We remember the life of Georgia native Army Sgt. William Allmon, who last week became the 125th Georgia soldier to be killed in Iraq. An audio postcard from a recent trash pick-up as part of the Keep Georgia Beautiful program. And we sit down with Cindy Wilson of legendary Athens band the B-52's about their new record "Funplex."

Georgia Gazette Monday, April 21

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Too much hope in HOPE recipients? A new report details how many recipients of Georgia's state-funded HOPE scholarship recipients still need remedial classes once they get to college. We chat with the reporter who broke the story, Jennifer Burk of the Macon Telegraph. Despite the state's high school dropout rate nearly topping the nation, encouraging words from a state university president. Dr. Larry Rivers is head of Fort Valley State University. Where a mother looks for support as she prepares to send her first child off to college. GPB reporter Josephine Bennett recites the poem "Children" by Kahlil Gibran. Tomorrow’s Earth Day ... Georgia Gazette will spend the week profiling environmental activism around the state. Today we meet a man who's developed Kokoon Homes ... a kind of build-it-yourself house that's also kind on the environment. And plans by a coastal Georgia county to become the "greenest" in the state. Chatham County, home to Savannah, has a long list, starting with recycling. And every Monday means your chance to win free parking and discounts at Georgia State Parks -- you can win by answering this week's Georgia Gazette riddle.

Georgia Gazette Friday, Apr. 18

Join host Valarie Edwards tonight for Georgia Gazette. Cyclists prepare to cross more than 30 Georgia counties: a preview of the Tour de Georgia. We give a nod to the state's popular writers and twenty-first century readers. And, the answer to this week’s Gazette quiz: an outdoorsman's paradise in northeast Georgia. All this and more, tonight on Georgia Gazette.

Georgia Gazette Thursday, Apr. 17

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. A state university gives a "go" to football. Georgia State University hopes its new football program will give students a more traditional college experience. We visit the First Robotics competition where 130,000 teenagers from around the world compete for the world's best robot. Why NPR’s Farai Chideya is in Georgia for a look at African American issues. We sit down with the host of News & Notes. Another shot at winning free parking at Georgia state parks with this week's Georgia Gazette riddle. We visit with Eric Levin, owner of Criminal Records in Atlanta, who helped organize national Record Store Day. Free food, in-store concerts, and music give-aways are only part of why Levin says record stores are still thriving in the U.S. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s GPB performance of music of love, suspense and the Holy Grail. We get a preview of tonight's broadcast from host Sarah Zaslaw. And Georgia's potters gear up to show off their thriving craft in Georgia.

Georgia Gazette Wednesday, Apr. 16

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. A look at what a cut in flows out of Lake Lanier means for Georgia. DNR whale watcher Clay George explains why the once nearly extinct Right Whale is making a comeback off Georgia's coast. Plus, culture shock: a U.S. ally turned Iraqi refugee tries to make a home in Georgia. And, Carmen Agra Deedy reads from her book Martina, the Beautiful Cockroach. It’s Georgia Reads Aloud Day. All this and the day’s top state news, tonight on Georgia Gazette.

Georgia Gazette, Tuesday April 15

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. The latest on the proposed marriage of Delta Air Lines and Northwest. What it means for Georgia to be the future home of world's largest airline. It's Tax Day -- we ask you what you plan on doing with your economic stimulus rebate from the federal government. Commentator Ric Latarski vents his frustration with the tax code. The road to recovery -- we check in on victims of a February sugar plant explosion rebuilding their bodies and their lives at an Augusta hospital. It's not just a boost for golf fans ... the Masters Tournament's surge to Augusta’s economy. Plus, meet a member of the internationally acclaimed Georgia Brass Band and hear the songs that won them first place in a recent national competition.

Georgia Gazette Riddle Apr. 14 - 18

If you answer this quiz correctly and your name is drawn, you will win a one-year membership to the group "Friends of Georgia State Parks." It includes free parking at all state parks and various other discounts and amenities.

Where the Savannah and Broad River collide
the town of Petersburg used to reside.
By this lake is a park on the land
named for a hero not a guy in a band.

E-mail your answers to gazette@gpb.org. You have until Friday to solve it. Good luck.

Georgia Gazette Monday, April 14

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. The link between the slumping housing market and arson in the Sherwood Forest section of Rome. It looks like Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines just might take the plunge-- more on the potential merger with Northwest Air Lines that would create the world’s largest carrier. A chance to win free parking at Georgia state parks with a new Georgia Gazette riddle. Sounds of cheers and tears from this past weekend's Masters Tournament in Augusta ... the extraordinary come-back of champion Trevor Immelman. A new book exposes slavery in the South long after the Civil War. We sit down with author Douglas Blackmon about his new book Slavery by Another Name: The Re-enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II. A tribute to civil rights leader Andrew Young. And we are there as the much-loved bell at the University of Georgia in Athens descends from its tower for repairs.

Georgia Gazette Friday, April 11

Join Orlando Montoya tonight for Georgia Gazette. Were water issues resolved this legislative session? And what about those pet projects pushed through at the last minute. Plus, counter-terrorism training in Brunswick, we tour the facility. And, we visit a north Georgia historic site and announce this week’s riddle winner. This and more, tonight on Georgia Gazette at 6, 7 in Athens.

Georgia Gazette Thursday, April 10

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. It's day one of the Masters Tournament in Augusta, hear the latest from the green. We sit down with hip-hop artist Antwan "Big Boi" Patton of the group Outkast. His new production "big" with the Atlanta Ballet makes its world premier tonight. Artist Jeffrey Callaham paints his country life in watercolor. Hear Callaham describe his art as part of our series Artists in their Own Words. Another crack at this week's Georgia Gazette Riddle. A preview of tonight's Atlanta Symphony Orchestra broadcast. And, a rendering of one woman's story at the dawn of the Civil War by storyteller Cathy Kaemmerlen. The Civil War began 147 years ago this week.

Georgia Gazette Wednesday, Apr. 9

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Professional golfers descend on Augusta: a look at the Masters Tournament's storied history with legendary Augusta golf historian Stan Byrdy. Hear about the tournament's traditional Par 3 event in which children serve as caddies. SPLOSTS in jeopardy around the state -- the impact of slowing tax revenues on local governments. A film about the only woman put to death in Georgia -- The Lena Baker Story makes its world premier this week at the Atlanta Film Festival. We chat with director Ralph Wilcox. And, a tour of the National Prisoner of War Museum in Andersonville. It opened 10 years ago today. And a bi-lingual poem from storyteller Barry Stewart Mann in honor of National Poetry Month. All this and more, tonight on Georgia Gazette.

Georgia Gazette Tuesday, Apr. 8

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. We look at why some Georgians are turning to food pantries for the first time. Dr. Stanley Fineman explains why this allergy season is worse than last and where you can turn for relief. Fort Benning soldiers explain how they're coping with an unusual invasion... of pigs. We’ll explain. And, Athens-based Packway Handle Band plays old fashioned bluegrass. All this and more – plus the winner of our REM record giveaway – tonight on Georgia Gazette.

Gazette Riddle for Apr. 7-11

It's time for this week's Georgia Gazette riddle!

If you answer it correctly and your name is drawn, you will receive a one year membership to the group Friends of Georgia State Parks. It includes free parking at all state parks and various other discounts and amenities.

Here is the quiz:

It was once an inn and plantation,
that also served as a stagecoach station.
Today it remains authentic and true,
near the banks of the mighty Tugaloo.

E-mail your answers to gazette@gpb.org.
You have until Friday to solve it. Good luck.

Georgia Gazette Monday, Apr. 7

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. State GOP in-fighting kills tax cuts, transporation funding, trauma care reform and other big legislation: Tom Crawford of Capitolimpact.com puts the 2008 legislative session in perspective. Plus, north Georgia pet owners worry about a rabies outbreak. Young social entrepreneurs compete at Georgia Tech to take their ideas to product…and social change. And, Georgia film and TV actor Dan Biggers in his own words. All this and more, tonight on Georgia Gazette.

Georgia Gazette Friday, Apr. 4

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Remembering the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 40 years later: hear from Georgians remembering where they were when they heard the news of King's death. Ambassador Andrew Young recalls the final moment's of King's life. A professor's hopes for the future of race relations in America. The state budget, tax reform, transportation funding, sex offender legislation, a lemon law ... which bills make the cut on the last day at the State Capitol. We chat with Col. Carl Block about how his Warner Robins Air Force base unit protects against cyber attackers. And, the answer and winner of this week’s Georgia Gazette quiz, and we read from your emails.

Listen to audio of Georgians remembering where they were at the time of Dr. Kings death.

Georgia Gazette Thursday, Apr. 3

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Solving the state’s transportation woes: we talk to Department of Transportation Commissioner Gena Abraham about her plans for solving traffic and funding problems around the state. As lawmakers enter the final day of the 2008 legislative session, GPB Capitol reporter Susanna Capelouto goes behind the headlines into the biggest battles. We visit an unusual art gallery ... in the woods -- the 6th annual Art in the Woods exhibition presented by the Stillmore Roots group. A chat with GPB classical music host Sarah Zaslaw about tonight's Atlanta Symphony Orchestra program, including Strauss’ “Merry Pranks.” And, the birthday of Georgia singer Billy Joe Royal who took us “Down in the Boondocks.”

Georgia Gazette Wednesday, Apr. 2

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Lawmakers face off over taxes in the final hours under the gold dome. We speak with Tom Crawford of Capitolimpact.com about the tax battle between House Speaker Glenn Richardson and Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, a developer on Jekyll Island yields to environmentalists looking to block development on part of the state park's beach, and more of what bills are still up in the air. Columbus companies screening for diabetes. This day in Georgia sports history -- UGA men's and women's basketball teams become the first in NCAA at the same time. Some Georgians go "green" with environmentally-friendly burials. We chat with Southern culinary author John T. Edge about his latest book Southern Belly: The Ultimate Food Lover's Companion to the South. And an R.E.M. giveaway! How you can win a double LP and CD of the Athens' band's new studio release Accelerate.

Georgia Gazette Tuesday, April 1

Join host Rickey Bevington tonight for Georgia Gazette. Twilight time at the Capitol, just three days left… a showdown between local and state government for control of water. Plus, the Sunday prohibition law in dispute. And, we kick off National Poetry Month with an homage to slang. This and more tonight on Georgia Gazette.