BackStory

Just the Facts?: Partisanship and the Press

What ever happened to good, old-fashioned, objective reporting? In this hour, the History Guys turn that question on its head, and ask instead where the notion of “objective” reporting came from in the first place.

Black & White: The Idea of Racial Purity

On this episode of BackStory, the History Guys look for the roots of America’s obsession with race, and ask why the line between black and white has remained so bold despite centuries of racial mixing.
Were the categories of “black” and “white” already in place when Africans first came to America, and if not, when did [...]

I Owe, I Owe: Debt in America

It seems like everyone owes money these days. But two hundred years ago, debt was considered not simply an economic failing, but a moral one. It could even land you in prison! In this hour, we look at how debt became the American way of life. Economic historian Louis Hyman argues that you and I [...]