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PODCAST

This Day

Jody Avirgan & Radiotopia

To mark our 250th birthday, “This Day” presents "50 Weeks That Shaped America," a series of deep dives into the stories that brought us to this moment. "This Day" takes you beyond the head-spinning headlines of today and into the unexpected historical moments that have shaped American politics and culture. 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

history

All Episodes

32:54

How Clinton-Lewinsky Set The Template For Modern...

This Day ·

2026/03/12

Our conversation about the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky affair continues, with a look at the changing media environment, the rise of FOX News, and how this created a template for the modern hyper-politicized scandal.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support our work and get

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42:46

Clinton, Lewinsky, FOX & Drudge [Part 1]

This Day ·

2026/03/10

This week on “50 Weeks That Shaped America” series, we go to fairly recent history — and the rise of the modern media-driven political scandal. During the government shutdown of 1995, Bill Clinton started a sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. A couple years later, world of the relationship would begin to leak, leading to a massive scandal and, eventually, Clinton’s impeachment. Much of this was fueled by a new media environment — blogs, Drudge, talk radio, and an

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18:20

The Speech That First Made Lincoln [Some Sunday Context]

This Day ·

2026/03/08

For our "Sunday Context" episode, we look at another speech by Abraham Lincoln, one he gave in 1860 at the Cooper Union in New York City. Before the speech, he was relatively unknown and not considered a viable candidate for president in that fall’s election. This speech changed everything.Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the speech both boosted Lincoln as a candidate, but also laid out his intellectual vision — one that was as much about continually evolving ideas on slavery as

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40:26

Lincoln's Second Inaugural w/ Jamelle Bouie (1865)...

This Day ·

2026/03/03

This week on "50 Weeks That Shaped America," we're headed to March 1865 to talk ab out Abraham Lincoln for the first time in our series. There are two speeches inscribed in the Lincoln Memorial - Gettysburg, of course, but also his second inaugural address. If people know they speech, they likely know the final words about “malice towards none; with charity for all” but in the first half of the speech, Lincoln offers a religiously-tinged reckoning for the causes and impact of the Civil

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26:33

Valley Forge: From Militia To US Army (1778) [Part One]

This Day ·

2026/02/24

This week on "50 Weeks That Shaped America," we're headed to the winter of 1777-1778 and the strategic retreat by the Continental Army to Valley Forge, PA. Over the course of that winter, George Washington worked to turn the army from a group of ragtag militias into a unified force -- all with the help of a mysterious Prussian general. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Valley Forge was effectively a pop-up city, and how it reflected what would come in an independent United States.Join our

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35:17

The Iwo Jima Mystery And The Power Of War Images...

This Day ·

2026/02/19

It's part two of our look at Joe Rosenthal's iconic photo "Raising The Flag On Iwo Jima." Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the mystery over who is actually in the photograph, how the photo shaped American's perception of the war -- and why war images continue to have such an impact, from Vietnam through Abu Ghraib.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free

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40:56

"Raising The Flag On Iwo Jima" (1945) [Part 1]

This Day ·

2026/02/17

This week on "50 Weeks That Shaped America," we're headed to February 1945, when attention in WWII has shifted to the Pacific. American forces are "island hopping" towards Japan, and in February a fierce battle broke out on the island of Iwo Jima. After an initial victory, a group of six men clambored to the top of the islands tallest point and hoisted a flag -- twice, as it happens. The photo of the second flag raising would become one of the most famous photographs in American history

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16:38

Roots: The Book [Some Sunday Context]

This Day ·

2026/02/15

For our "Sunday Context" series, we look at Alex Haley's book "Roots" -- how it became a sensation, accusations of plagiarism, and how it led to the TV series.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support our work and get access to everything, subscribe now.This Day is a proud member of

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31:08

What Roots Viewers Saw (1977) [Part 2]

This Day ·

2026/02/12

It's part two of our "50 Weeks That Shaped America" look at the premiere of Alex Haley’s “Roots.”Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss some of the key scenes and characters in the eight-part epic, and why so many Americans were drawn to the series.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support

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13:23

A Compromise To Avert Civil War [Some Sunday Context]

This Day ·

2026/02/08

For our "Sunday Context" series, we discuss the political pressures that the arrival of California as a new state put on the country as a whole -- and the various attempts to avoid a conflict over the question of slavery and its expansion.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support our

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31:38

Gold Changes Everything (1849) [Part 2]

This Day ·

2026/02/05

We continue our look at the effects of the gold rush with an examination of how various communities were affected, and found agency, in a rapidly transforming California -- women, Chinese immigrants, Native Americans, criminals, and more. Plus: how California "speed ran" modern capitalism, and set the stage for what America would become in the 150 years to come.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out

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30:13

The "Axis Of Evil" (2002) [Part 1]

This Day ·

2026/01/27

This week on "50 Weeks That Shaped America," we're headed to January 2002 and the first State of the Union speech after the 9-11 attacks. In it, George W Bush referred to Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as an "axis of evil," signalling that the response to 9-11 would be a much larger campaign, and a moral fight. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how Bush landed on that phrase, what it was meant to evoke, and how it set the stage for the "War on Terror" period in American history.Join our

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18:42

A New Orleans Slave Rebellion [Some Sunday Context]

This Day ·

2026/01/25

For our "Sunday Context" series, we build on this past week's coversation about the Battle of New Orleans with a look at the largest slave rebellion in US history, led by Charles Deslondes, which took place just outside of New Orleans in 1811. Like the story of the War of 1812, this involved the mix of ethnic, political, and cultural forces that only New Orleans has -- and highlights the way in which the future of slavery would become the defining issue of the era.Join our America250

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24:57

Andrew Jackson Takes Control (1815) [Part 2]

This Day ·

2026/01/22

If part two of our "50 Weeks" look at the Battle Of New Orleans. Jody, Niki, and Kellie look at the pirates, generals, and others who fought that day in January of 1815 -- and how the events burnished the reputation of future President Andrew Jackson. In the end, the battle itself may not have had much of a military impact, but the story of the battle helped define a new American century.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how

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33:20

The Battle Of New Orleans and The New American...

This Day ·

2026/01/20

This week on "50 Weeks That Shaped America," we're headed to January 1815 and the Battle Of New Orleans -- which actually took place after the War of 1812 had formally concluded. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the US, Britain, France and others were still squabbling over their empires as the US turned its sights to a new frontier.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get

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36:03

The Drinking Continues (1920) [Part 2]

This Day ·

2026/01/15

Part two of our look at the rise of prohibition looks at the many ways in which Americans tried to evade the law, and how a burgeoning police state went after them. Plus: How did Prohibition shape America, in the end?Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support our work and get access

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32:04

The Bicentennial Boondoggles (1976) [Part 2]

This Day ·

2026/01/08

In part two of our look at the bicentennial, Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the festivities played out, and how Philadelphia ended up becoming the center of the action, depsite (or because of) their corrupt mayor Frank Rizzo.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying subscribers get access to early, ad-free versions of the show. Plus bonus features throughout the year. To support our work and

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25:18

Bicentennial Fever! (1976) [Part One]

This Day ·

2026/01/06

It's Week 1 of "50 Weeks That Shaped America," and we're headed to 1976 to look at how America's last big birthday came together. In part one, Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the country was in a deep malaise headed into the bicentennial, and the shambolic planning of the festivities reflected the larger distrust and dysfunction of government.Join our America250 newsletter community! Subscribe for free to get the latest news and analysis of how America250 is playing out. Paying

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19:48

2026 Predictions and Provocations

This Day ·

2026/01/04

2026 is here! As is America250. On Tuesday, we're launching our 50 Weeks That Shaped America series, but today we get together to ring in the new year with a few "predictions and provocation."Note: The full version of this episode, with video, is available for paying subscribers to our newsletter. Our America250 series will always be free in the regular podcast feed, but throughout the year we will be bringing our newsletter community bonus conversations -- and access to early, ad-free

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32:18

Wikipedia Saves The Internet [2025 Favorite]

This Day ·

2025/12/28

We're bringing you some of our favorite episodes of 2025 while we get a holiday break -- and prepare for our big America250 series. See you in 2026!It's June 24th. In 2003, Jimmy Wales, the owner of Wikipedia, made the decision to put the site under the ownership of a non-profit company.Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why this decision made a huge difference for the site, and reflected a lot of the ways that the Internet has worked, and not worked, in the decades since. They are joined by

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