BackStory is a weekly public podcast hosted by U.S. historians Ed Ayers, Brian Balogh, Nathan Connolly and Joanne Freeman. We're based in Charlottesville, Va. at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.
Each week we take a topic that people are talking about and explore it through the lens of American history. Through stories, interviews, and conversation with our listeners, we make history engaging and fun.
100 years ago, the Bolshevik Party seized power in Russia. Brian, Joanne, and Nathan explore how that distant revolution had an immediate impact in the U.S.
54 Min
Nov 10, 2017
On this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Brian and Ed discuss things in the sky we can’t explain - unidentified flying objects.
61 Min
Oct 27, 2017
On this episode of BackStory, Ed, Brian, Nathan, and Joanne tackle three stories that have been in the news recently.
33 Min
Oct 20, 2017
On this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Nathan and Brian explore stories of superstition and the surprising roles the number 13 has played across American history.
In this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed, and Nathan dip into the BackStory archive to look at four rulings that shaped public life in America.
On this episode of BackStory, Ed, Brian, and Nathan look at how America has dealt with our adversaries across time.
In this episode of BackStory, Brian, Joanne, and Ed discuss the history behind 3 stories in the news
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Joanne, and Nathan wrestle with a long-running tension in our country’s history: what it means to assimilate and “become American.”
On this episode of BackStory, Brian sits down with Republican political strategist Karl Rove to talk about his book, “The Triumph of William McKinley: Why the Election of 1896 Still Matters.”
In this episode of BackStory, Ed, Nathan and Joanne explore how 19th-century honor culture demanded that a man’s good name be saved by any means necessary — even murder.
In this BackStory Short Take, Brian sits down with University of Virginia Law School Vice Dean Leslie Kendrick to discuss the constitutionality of regulating weapons at public protests.
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Nathan, Joanne and Ed discuss the horrific events that happened in Charlottesville last weekend, and how it fits into American history.
On this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Brian and Ed, talk about how Americans have tried to actively change the North American climate.
On this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed, and Nathan explore the ways Americans have spent their time off.
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Joanne, and Nathan explore some of the stories Americans tell about our past and find the kernels of truth that lie at the heart of a few American legends.
In this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Ed, Brian and Joanne discuss the history behind stories in the news.
In this episode of BackStory, we explore what it means to be white in America, and how the concept of whiteness has fundamentally shaped our country.
On this episode of BackStory, we look at local history by broadcasting segments from podcasts we admire.
In this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Ed, Brian and Joanne discuss the history behind stories in the news and celebrate the 200th show with founding host Peter Onuf.
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Joanne and Nathan explore some of the many meanings Americans have attached to hair.
On this episode of BackStory, Ed, Nathan and Brian discuss when and why many of the nation’s Confederate statues were erected, and what they stood for.
On this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed and Nathan explore the history of privacy in America.
In this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed, and Nathan talk about the history behind items in this week’s news.
In this episode of BackStory, Ed, Joanne, and Brian look at the many reasons for joining the U.S. armed services.
In this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed and Brian look at the long history of political satire in America.
In this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Ed and Brian look at America's long history with opioids - like opium, morphine and heroin.
In this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed, Brian and Nathan discuss the history behind items in this week’s news.
On this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed and Nathan talk about the people who collect items that preserve the nation's history.
In this grab bag, Joanne, Ed, Brian and Nathan look at the deep history of sanctuary cities and rule of law, at America’s history of boycotts, and talk about why it’s so hard for presidents to actually shrink the federal government.
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Joanne, and Ed discuss how this oft-forgotten war set the stage for the American century.
In this episode of BackStory, Joanne, Ed and Brian probe the deeper history of the U.S. relationship with Russia — and discover moments of comity as well as conflict.
In this episode of BackStory, Ed, Nathan and Joanne explore the central questions of the Reconstruction era.
In BackStory’s second history grab bag, Joanne, Ed, Brian, and Nathan discuss the history behind items in this week’s news.
On this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Joanne, and Brian look at the deep roots of advocacy in journalism.
In this episode of BackStory, we explore how the federal government monitors and polices the undocumented.
On this episode of BackStory, Ed, Nathan and Brian look at the central role that political protests have played throughout American history.
In BackStory’s first history grab bag, Joanne, Brian and Nathan discuss the history behind items in this week’s news.
On this episode of BackStory, Nathan, Joanne and Ed will look at other times in history when Americans had to be a bit more careful about what they read.
On this episode of BackStory, Ed, Brian, and Joanne look back at sweeping immigration restrictions in the 19th and 20th centuries.
On this episode of BackStory, Brian, Ed and Nathan look at what happens when urban and rural Americans collide.
In this episode of BackStory, Peter, Ed, and Brian explore the origins of July Fourth.
