A Compendium of 'Junk English' NPR | By Jennifer Ludden Published November 7, 2004 at 12:00 AM EST Facebook LinkedIn Email Listen • 0:00 Ken Smith is the author of Junk English 2, a book about the often meaningless words and phrases Americans love to use. He sees the language "spiraling downward." Hear Smith and NPR's Jennifer Ludden. Copyright 2004 NPR