Chavez to start writing newspaper column

President Hugo Chavez is once again following the lead of his ailing Cuban ally, Fidel Castro — this time, writing a newspaper column. The socialist leader said Tuesday the column to be published in various Venezuelan newspapers will be called "Chavez's Lines ... it occurred to me as one more way to contribute to this battle of ideas," he said.

Chavez said his first column will be about baseball, a sport he once played, and will hit newspaper stands on Thursday. The president says he is pursuing the medium to discuss ideas that "come not from a bat, but from the mind." He is also campaigning for a Feb. 15 referendum that could end term limits for the president and all other elected officials.

While Chavez has canceled his weekly television show, "Hello, President," during the month leading up to the vote, he has increased campaign events — addressing supporters for hours nearly every day. Chavez has long been a close ally of Castro, often pausing during his long-winded speeches to send out a salute: "Fidel, how are you?"

Castro has not been seen in public since falling ill in July 2006, but has regularly written essays that are read on state television, and columns published under the title "Reflections of the Commander in Chief." After handing over power to his brother, Raul, in February 2008, Castro changed the title to "Reflections of Comrade Fidel."