Slate History
A feed with the best history coverage from Slate’s wide range of podcasts. From narrative shows like Slow Burn, One Year, and Decoder Ring, to timely analysis from ICYMI and What Next, you’ll get the fascinating stories and vital context you need to understand where we came from and where we're going.
176
Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Thomas - Ep. 3: I’m...
To understand who Clarence Thomas was in the 1980s, you need to hear from the women who knew him best.
51 min
177
Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Thomas - Ep. 2: Smi...
Racial preferences gave Clarence Thomas a leg up. They also made him feel degraded.
45 min
178
A Word: My Father, the Spy
Martin Luther King Jr., a Black police mole, and the lie that brought them together.
23 min
179
Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Thomas - Ep. 1: Ame...
How Clarence Thomas went from an aspiring priest to a campus radical.
50 min
180
Hear Me Out: “Thank You For Your Service” Feels...
There are ways to thank vets that would actually make a difference.
25 min
181
A Word: Reckoning on Campus
How the “Hard Histories” project exploded an abolitionist myth.
32 min
182
Hear Me Out: Policing Can’t Be Reformed And Mus...
Some systems are just too broken to fix.
31 min
183
A Word: The Ballot, the Bullet, and the Truth
MLK’s condemnation of Malcolm X never happened. Why that matters now.
34 min
184
A Word: Dungeons, Dragons, and Diversity
How “blerds” and other geeks of color are diversifying hobby games.
32 min
185
Decoder Ring: Who Owns the Tooth Fairy?
The Tooth Fairy’s freak flag is still flying.
34 min
186
A Word: Becoming “The Black Mozart”
Actor Kelvin Harrison Jr., star of “Chevalier,” on bringing forgotten virtuoso Joseph Bologne to film.
18 min
187
What Next: Charles In Charge
A coronation is a good time to ask of the monarchy “Do we have to?”
21 min
188
What Next: America’s Rich History of Gun Control
How “originalist” arguments against gun control distort actual history.
21 min
189
Decoder Ring: Why You Can’t Find a Damn Parking...
Parking is a mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. We can get ourselves out of it.
33 min
190
Hear Me Out: The Iraq War Was a Necessary Evil
Iraqis are freer now than they would have been without us.
28 min
191
Decoder Ring: The Artist Who Was Both Loved and...
The painter LeRoy Neiman was adored by many Americans—but not the art critics.
33 min
192
Political Gabfest Reads: The Art of Writing Pol...
Alexandra Petri’s new book Alexandra Petri’s US History asks “What would sexting between John and Abigail Adams have been like?” among other burning questions.
21 min
193
Decoder Ring: The Curious Case of Columbo's Mes...
Why does no one remember the T.V. detective’s Cold War missive?
36 min
194
Hi-Phi Nation: Living in a Zoopolis
What Would It Look Like to Give Animals Full Legal Rights?
44 min
195
What Next: He Couldn’t Teach ‘Slavery Was Wrong...
More teachers are leaving their jobs as a wave of restrictive legislation targets educators across the country.
25 min
196
Decoder Ring: The Curious Case of Columbo's Mes...
Was the cigar-chomping detective also a Cold War diplomat?
39 min
197
A Word: The Battle for Eatonville
Classic novel Their Eyes Were Watching God immortalized Eatonville, Florida. Will the town survive?
24 min
198
Hear Me Out: Secession Could Be A Good Thing
Slate’s new podcast tackles increasing, nationwide calls for secession.
33 min
199
A Word: When a Race War Threat Was Real
Martin Luther King Jr.’s murder broke Black America’s spirit. It never fully healed.
28 min
200
What Next: A Disability Rights Icon’s Long Legacy
Judy Heumann changed the world for disabled people—and her mentees are the future of this on-going movement.
25 min