Historians in the News

The historian behind the BBC’s new documentary — Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners — tells The Voice why unearthing these stories is so important

"The idea that slavery is over-exposed is a myth," says David Olusoga.

USC’s Jacob Soll says German anger is sabotaging Greece

by Jacob Soll

The economic historian says Germans see themselves as victims of debtors.

Historians are recovering the sounds, smells and other sensory details of the past

by Scott McLemee

Bare yourself.  Reading these books can bring on a gag reflex. 

Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s Leap Into the Racially Charged 1960s

by Scott Porch

He was a lifelong Democrat but tough to pigeonhole as either a conservative or liberal, and he had worked in both Johnson and Nixon administrations.

2015 Report: Historians facing censorship and abuse around the world

by Antoon De Baets

The twenty-first Annual Report of the Network of Concerned Historians (NCH) contains news about the domain where history and human rights intersect, especially about the censorship of history and the persecution of historians, archivists and archaeologists around the globe, as reported by various human rights organizations and other sources.

William Conrad Gibbons, Dogged Writer Who Chronicled Vietnam War, Dies at 88

Dr. Gibbons conducted interviews and analyzed a mass of material for his multivolume work about the relationship between Congress and the executive branch during the Vietnam War.

Is the History Major Dominated by the Upper Middle Class?

Here are two top-five lists of college majors. What factor determines the ranking?

William Cronon says history and geography survive the digital age

He points to a project where he and his students created a digital tool for interpreting a major cemetery to members of the public.

Accused plagiarist Matthew Whitaker admits his book was flawed and accepts a demotion

by HNN Editor

Following a university investigation he's been demoted from full professor to associate professor.

Sam Haselby argues religion trumps politics in his new book

by Gordon Wood

Gordon Wood, in a review, wonders if it's because Haselby spent 6 years teaching in the Middle East.

Historian Peter Cole calls on America to take down everything named after Nathan Bedford Forrest

by Peter Cole

"The Confederate general and KKK “grand wizard” belongs on the short list of the most vile white supremacists in American history. Yet parks and monuments in his name can be found throughout the South."

Indigenous woman scholars join in open letter to denounce Andrea Smith

by List of Scholars Below

Smith has claimed she’s Native American. The ample evidence, they say, is that she’s not.

Historian Martin Kramer attacks the new documentary that claims Israel covered up war crimes in the 1967 war

by Martin Kramer

"It turns out that there was massive censorship of Soldiers’ Voices back in 1967. But the official censor didn’t do it."

Historian Brian Allen Drake says Barry Goldwater, whatever his other policies, was an enthusiastic environmentalist

by Brian Hamilton

In an interview he notes that Goldwater even supported the establishment of the EPA. 

Renowned historian and academic Richard Fox Young alleges that Indian research scholar and writer Rajeev Malhotra has plagiarized his works

Young resorted to Twitter to complain.  Malhotra then used Twitter to respond.

Harvard’s Nancy Cott says the dissenters in the gay marriage case have a stilted idea of the history of marriage

by Nancy F. Cott

"History, like the Constitution, can be read in more than one way."

Keith Weiser says it's important to teach the history of anti-Semitism

by Huff Post Columnist Sara Akrami

But there's a problem: "There is little in the way of a required curriculum beyond distributional requirements at most universities in the U.S. and Canada."

A historian's expose leads Mennonites to apologize for history of sex abuse following theologian John Howard Yoder scandal

Rachel Waltner Goossen, a Mennonite, is a history professor at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas.

Historian: "I don’t want my students to simply choose sides in a polemic between heritage and hate"

by David C. Williard

Historian David C. Williard says he wants his students to understand the context of the debate over the Confederate flag.

What I’m Reading: An interview with Historian Heather Cox Richardson

by Tiffany April Griffin

"I didn’t really choose history; it chose me. I’m from a small town, and grew up listening to people who made sense of the world through their stories about the past. History was very real to us, and very important for understanding the present."