WordPress is an open source blogging platform that uses MySQL as its backend database. It allows users to easily create and host different types of blogs for personal, corporate, or genre-specific purposes. While WordPress is free and fast to set up with simple hosting requirements, some disadvantages include similar-looking default themes, potential security issues, and database queries that can slow performance. It provides easy administration tools and features to engage readers and publicize blog posts. WordPress has won multiple awards for its open source CMS capabilities.