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PODCAST

This Day

Jody Avirgan & Radiotopia

“This Day” takes you beyond the head-spinning headlines of today and into the unexpected historical moments that have shaped American politics. Hosted by Jody Avirgan (538), and historians Nicole Hemmer (Vanderbilt), and Kellie Carter Jackson (Wellesley), each episode explores a moment from that day in U.S. political history to uncover its lasting impact. On Sunday episodes, Jody, Niki and Kellie react to current news with their usual mix of humor, analysis, and historical perspective.New

history

All Episodes

18:17

Reagan's German Cemetery Visit Controversy (1985)

This Day ·

2025/05/06

It's May 5th. This day in 1985, President Reagan visits a German military cemetery in Bitburg, where a number of SS Soldiers were buried.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why the visit to the cemetery had been a controversial decision for months, why Reagan still went ahead with the visit -- and how the attempt to clean up the mess afterwards didn't go any better.Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.Your support helps

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16:43

The Women's Health Vacuum (Some Sunday Context)

This Day ·

2025/05/04

The Trump administration is targeting health and scientific research -- often based on whether it includes keywods like "women." This presents the risk that a science vacuum will emerge, which could take years or decades to unwind.Today, as part of our "Some Sunday Context" series, we go back to a moment when there was a huge dearth of research and information about women's health -- and grassroots efforts to fix it.In Boston, in 1969, a group of women got together to share information

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20:06

Lincoln Needs Troops (1861)

This Day ·

2025/05/01

It's May 1st. This day in 1861, the Civil War is breaking out and President Lincoln issues a desperate call for more military volunteers.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Lincoln's appeal galvanized the sides of the conflict, with Northern volunteers feeling called to duy and Southerners framing the battle as "northern agression."Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned

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25:41

The Artists Who Worked For The CIA (1960) w/ Benjamen...

This Day ·

2025/04/29

[[This is an episode from the This Day archives -- we'll be back with a new conversation real soon!]]It's May 5th. This day in 1960, a British theater critic named Kenneth Tynan is hauled before a Senate sub-committee to answer questions about what is seen as his anti-American work.It's a moment that captures the cultural and political swirl of the late 50s, which is the subject of Benjamen Walker's new audio series "Not All Propaganda Is Art," out now as part of the Radiotopia show "Theory

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22:19

The Ludlow Massacre (1914)

This Day ·

2025/04/15

It's April 17th. In 1914, at the mining town of Ludlow, Colorado tensions are ratcheting up to a moment when the national guard and private police would descend upon an encampment of striking workers, killing dozens including women and children.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how things got so heated in Ludlow -- and the public outrage that boiled over in the wake of the massacre.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud

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59:43

Government vs. Universities (Some Sunday Context)

This Day ·

2025/04/13

The Trump administration is going after universities -- threatening to withhold funding in an attempt to bring them under ideological control. It's a very rocky moment, but the history of the relationship between federal funding and research institutions has often been rocky.Today on our "Some Sunday Context" series, Jody, Niki, and Kellie look at the way that universities have taken federal money, and what kinds of strings have been attached though the years. Plus, some thoughts on this

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16:27

The Lynching Of A German Immigrant (1917)

This Day ·

2025/04/10

It's April 9th. This day in 1917, a German man by the name of Robert Prager is attacked and lynched during a time of rising anti-immigrant sentiment in The United States.Jody, Niki, and Kellie talk about the pervasive suspicion of Germans in the run-up to World War I, and how Prager's lynching was cheerleaded by the media, the government, and larger society.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from

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19:49

Starbucks #RaceTogether Campaign Backfires (2015)

This Day ·

2025/04/03

It's April 3rd. In 2015, Starbucks announces that it is bringing its "Race Together" initiative to a close, after it was relentlessly mocked and critced online and in stores.Jody, Niki, and Kellie look back at the very-Obama-era effort by the coffee chain to spark conversations about racial inequality by having their baristas write #racetogether on customer's cups. Customers were not feeling it.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History

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18:39

Carter's Unbelievable Rabbit Vendetta

This Day ·

2025/04/01

It's April 1st. This day, Jimmy Carter performed on of the most unbelievable acts in presidential history.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comAnd don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, coming soon from Radiotopia.This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website:

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24:29

Five Lessons For Five Years (Some Sunday Context)

This Day ·

2025/03/30

We are turning five! For today's "Some Sunday Context" conversation, Jody, Niki, and Kellie mark five years of the show and run through five big themes and lessons from five years of covering American history.00:00 Happy 5th Anniversary!3:30 Theme One: People Are Petty!7:10 Theme Two: Near Catastrophe10:30 Theme Three: Backlash Defines Everything14:30 Theme Four: Americans Hate Paying Taxes17:20 Theme Five: We Are Still Fighting The Civil WarSign up for our newsletter! Find out more at

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17:45

"I'm Just A Bill" (1976)

This Day ·

2025/03/27

It's March 27th. This day in 1976, Schoolhouse Rock premieres the song "I'm Just A Bill," an animated look at the process by which legislation gets passed -- or languishes in the halls of Congress.Jody, Niki, and Kellie talk about how the song came together, the legislation at the heart of the process, and whether lawmaking still happens the same way.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comAnd don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, coming soon from

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43:01

Graceland (Some Sunday Context from Summer Album /...

This Day ·

2025/03/23

Today, for our Some Sunday Context" series, a little bit of a departure. Jody has a new music show called "Summer Album / Winter Album" -- here's a taste of the recent conversation on Paul Simon's classic "Graceland" with special guest Malcolm Gladwell. We hope you enjoy it, and if you want to hear the full episode make sure to subscribe to the new show wherever you get your podcasts, on YouTube, and more. It's all at www.summeralbumwinteralbum.comMeanwhile, next Sunday we are marking five

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19:17

"Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death" (1775)

This Day ·

2025/03/20

It's March 23rd. This day in 1775, Patrick Henry of Virginia gave a speech in which he (maybe) uttered one of the more famous phrases in American political history.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Henry came to give such a fiery speech, the reaction from those in the room -- and why it's hard to know exactly what he said, if it matters at all.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comAnd don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, coming soon from Radiotopia.This

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22:03

What William Freeman's Act Meant (1846)

This Day ·

2025/03/13

Part two of our conversation with Harvard's Robin Bernstein about William Freeman's act of murder and protest in the prison town of Auburn, NY.Robin's new book is called Freeman's Challenge -- it's available now!Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comAnd don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, coming soon from Radiotopia.This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts

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56:35

The Anti-DEI Cycle (Some Sunday Context)

This Day ·

2025/03/02

There's an anti-DEI push taking place under the Trump administration -- is it just another in the long cycle of backlashes going all the way to reconstruction?Welcome to our latest "Some Sunday Context" conversation. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the PC wars of the 90s, anti-affirmative action efforts of the 70s and 80s, and more. Plus, quick reactions to the latest news, from anti-trans efforts to the showdown between Trump, Vance and Zelenskyy.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at

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19:46

The Anti-Pay-Toilet Fight (1973)

This Day ·

2025/02/27

It's February 27th. This day in 1973, the City of Chicago is converting all of its pay toilets to free toilets.Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss the grassroots movement and years-long fight over pay toilets -- and why public restrooms have always been such contested spaces.Sign up for our newsletter! Find out more at thisdaypod.comAnd don’t forget about Oprahdemics, hosted by Kellie, coming soon from Radiotopia.This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from

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50:15

The President vs. The Courts (Some Sunday Context)

This Day ·

2025/02/16

Donald Trump has issued a flurry of executive orders, and Elon Musk is slashing and burning state capacity. But the courts, Congress, and public opinion may also have something to say about it.Welcome to "Some Sunday Context" series for Febraury 16th, 2025. Every Sunday, we try and bring you an episode that offers a little historical perspective on what we're seeing in Donald Trump's second term.Today: Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Trump and Musk are testing -- and sometimes defying --

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19:00

The U.S.S. Pueblo Hostage Crisis (1968)

This Day ·

2025/02/06

It's February 6th. This day in 1968, 82 crewmembers of the U.S.S. Pueblo have been captured by North Korea, setting off a major hostage crisis in the midst of an already very tumultuous year.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the Pueblo came to be captured, what the eleven-month negotiations revealed about U.S. power, and why the incident isn't as well-remembered as some of the other events of 1968.Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch!Find out more at

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13:01

The "Bedsheet Ballot" (1964)

This Day ·

2025/01/30

It's January 29th. In 1964, because of an impasse over redistricting, the state of Illinois held elections in which every candidate was at-large.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss what happened when voters entered the booth and were confronted with 118 races to weigh in on.Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch!Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned

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18:00

The First Issue Of National Geographic (1888)

This Day ·

2025/01/28

It's January 28th. This day in 1888, a new society is formed in Washington D.C. to support the exploration of the entire globe -- and soon thereafter the magazine bearing its name would hit the shelves.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why the National Geographic Society was founded, how it fit into the late 19th century American vision of the world, and how the magazine took off in the years since.Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch!Find out more at thisdaypod.comThis

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127 results

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