Historians in the News

Teaching in the Age of Disinformation

Despite many professors' confidence in their ability to foster discussion of controversial subjects, studies suggest avoidance is a much more common approach. Historian of political rhetoric Jennifer Mercieca works to make students more direct and purposeful consumers of news. 

New Revelations about Trump’s Cruelty Demand a Bigger Response

Eric Foner discusses the application of the 14th Amendment to prevent Trump or any other officials implicated in inciting the attack on the Capitol from holding public office in Post commentator Greg Sargent's column. 

By the People, for the People, but Not Necessarily Open to the People

“'It breaks my heart that I can no longer access a building that has meant so much to me during my lifetime,' said Kenneth Bowling, a historian at George Washington University." Emily Badger writes that increased security will also impact the public spaces and parks accessible to the residents of the District.

Another Cold War: Documenting America's Cold Civil War

A discussion of the ongoing impact of Lost Cause mythologies includes the work of new HNN blogger Ann Banks. 

Was the attack on Congress un-American? Yes and no, historians say

Historians John Giggie and Manisha Sinha weigh in on how the Capitol riots do and don't reflect patterns of violence in American history. 

Review: Was the Constitution a Pro-Slavery Document?

by Gordon S. Wood

Gordon Wood says James Oakes's new book examines the dialectical relationship between 19th century interpretations of the Constitution as a pro-slavery and anti-slavery document and argues that that debate steered Lincoln toward a commitment to racial equality as inextricable from abolition.

There’s an Alternative to Impeachment Or 25th Amendment for Trump, Historians Say

by Michael S. Rosenwald

Eric Foner discusses Section III of the 14th Amendment, which barred those guilty of engaging in or aiding insurrection against the United States from holding elected or civil office in the United States. The section has no provision for removal from office but would prevent Trump's reelection if he were found guilty of insurrection.

Julian Zelizer Joins "Here and Now" to Discuss Biden Voting Rights Push

How will Biden deliver a planned speech on voting rights under the shadow of the filibuster? Will it sway reluctant Democrats like Manchin and Sinema? 

Ex-Friends: Anne Applebaum and the Crisis of Centrist Politics

Critic David Klion considers the unexamined relationship between the late 20th Century rise of market-oriented liberalism and the 21st century rise of authoritarian nationalism (or, "why so many of her once-close friends have turned out to be fascists").

Historians and Constitutional Scholars’ Statement on the Second Impeachment of President Donald Trump

by Historians and Legal Scholars for Impeachment

A group of historians and legal scholars has created an open letter calling for the impeachment of Donald Trump over his role in the Capitol riot of January 6. 

How the Pro-Trump Mob Fits in the History of U.S. Lynching

Kathleen Belew joins Nikole Hannah-Jones on Joy Ann Reid's show to discuss the rise of the far right movement that drove the Capitol rioting on January 6. 

Don't Compare the Capitol Riot to the "Third World"

"Lucia Dammert, a Wilson Center Global Fellow and Professor at the University of Santiago of Chile objects to the comparison to the Global South -- adding that the U.S. has played a key role in sparking the turbulence, especially in Latin America."

Confederate Battle Flag an Unnerving Sight in Capitol

Historians Mary Frances Berry and William Blair discuss the history of Confederate attacks on Washington and the jarring symbolism of the symbol being carried in the Capitol by rioters.

Whiteness is at the Core of the Insurrection

Historian Keisha N. Blain argues that the historic white entitlement to control government reared its head yet again on January 6. 

‘The Turner Diaries’ Didn’t Just Inspire The Capitol Attack. It Warns Us What Might Be Next

Historian Kathleen Belew discusses the centrality of the 1978 novel to the far right and its possible use as a blueprint for future attacks.

The Day the Confederate Flag Flew in the United States Capitol: Bill Moyers and Heather Cox Richardson

Heather Cox Richardson discusses the southern drive to reinstitute one-party, white supremacist oligarchy after Reconstruction, and how the present insurrection reflects the same drive on a national scale. 

'Another Milestone in the Long, Long Road.' Rev. Raphael Warnock's Georgia Senate Victory Made History in Multiple Ways

by Olivia B. Waxman

Historians including Adam Domby and Kali Nicole Gross relate the symbolic and political significance of Rev. Raphael Warnock's victory in Georgia's senate runoff. But that history suggests gains in Black political power will face backlash, warns Carol Anderson. 

Neil Sheehan, Reporter Who Obtained the Pentagon Papers, Dies at 84

Neil Sheehan's earned skepticism of the rightness of the American mission in Vietnam made him the reporter to whom Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971. He won a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award for his volume "A Bright Shining Lie" about the war. 

Heather Cox Richardson Offers a Break From the Media Maelstrom. It’s Working

NYT media reporter Ben Smith looks at the phenomenon of Heather Cox Richardson's newsletters, which have become popular for their long view of the present moment and rejection of sensationalized outrage. 

Disciplining The City: Scholarship And The Carceral State Year In Review 2020

Charlotte Rosen and Matthew Guariglia compile 2020's most essential works of scholarship on the nexus of urbanization, racism, policing, and mass incarceration.