A Giant Listening Project

Something dark and invisible makes up as much as 90 to 95 percent of the universe—and it took a little girl staring out a bedroom window at the night sky to bring it to light. As a child, Vera Rubin built her own telescope. As an adult, she uncovered a problem no telescope could ...  Show more

A string of unsolved murders in San Francisco's Chinatown in the 1970s led police to the door of a young Korean immigrant named Chol Soo Lee — who was quickly arrested and sentenced to life in prison. But when investigative journalist K.W. Lee started digging into the case, he di ...  Show more

Jamil Smith talks with Erin Thompson, professor of art crime and author of Smashing Statues: The Rise and Fall of America's Public Monuments. They discuss why we honor horrible people from the past in metal and stone, what effects these objects have on our present, and what's kee ...  Show more

The war between the Union and the Confederacy is a major turning point in the history of the United States. But why did it happen?

From slavery and states' rights, to economic, legislative, moral, and political issues, in this episode, Don and Professor Adam Smith ex ...

How does a heroic general of the Civil War become one of the lowest rated Presidents (at least until recently)?

To discuss Grant's commitment to reconstruction, civil rights, and the crushing of the Ku Klux Klan, Don is joined by Professor Anne Marshall. Anne is a hi ...

When ‘Roots: The Saga of an American Family’ made novelist Alex Haley an international sensation, he revisited Juffure, Gambia - the village where he claimed his 18th-century ancestor Kunta Kinte had been captured into slavery. On 16th April, 1977, he was welcomed ‘home’ as a her ...  Show more