S8 Ep142: Lessons from WWII: Unleashing Private Enterprise — Arthur Herman — Herman explores the strategic tension during WWII between New Deal administrators favoring centralized government command and industrialists prioritizing private sector innovation and ope

S8 Ep142: The B-29 Superfortress and the Battle of Omaha — Arthur Herman — Herman recounts the genesis of the B-29 Superfortress bomber, conceived after General Hap Arnold consulted with Charles Lindbergh in 1939. The B-29 represented the ultimate expression of air

S8 Ep142: Henry Kaiser: The Builder of Liberty Ships — Arthur Herman — Herman profiles Henry Kaiser, the second transformative figure in Freedom's Forge. Kaiser, a road construction entrepreneur who had previously coordinated monumental infrastructure projects incl

S8 Ep142: Freedom's Forge: FDR, WWII Mobilization, and Bill Knudsen — Arthur Herman — Herman discusses his book Freedom's Forge, detailing the extraordinary challenge FDR confronted in May 1940 to prepare America for modern industrial warfare. The preeminent indust

S8 Ep142: Go Woke, Go Broke: The Financial Backlash and Corporate Retreat — Charles Gasparino — Gasparino reports that woke capitalism is experiencing significant financial retrenchment as corporations suffer bottom-line consequences. BlackRock experienced approxim

S8 Ep142: Disney and ESPN: Running a Blue Company in a Red State — Charles Gasparino — Gasparino analyzes the radicalization of the Walt Disney Company, noting that CEO Bob Iger brought progressive cultural affinities while the company maintained profitability. His

S8 Ep142: The Flashpoints of Woke Capitalism: Occupy Wall Street and the SEC — Charles Gasparino — Gasparino identifies the 2008 financial crisis and the ensuing progressive populist backlash, including the Occupy Wall Street encampment at Zuccotti Park, as pivotal

S8 Ep142: Woke Capitalism: Origins, ESG, DEI, and the Power of BlackRock — Charles Gasparino — Gasparino traces the origins of "woke capitalism," detailing how corporate America became an active institutional agent for progressive social change. This ideological sh

S8 Ep141: Angelica's Later Life: Return, Tragedy, and Founding Angelica, NY — Molly Beer — Angelica visited the United States for President Washington's 1789 inauguration but quickly returned to London, disappointed that the nascent republic fell short of her revol

S8 Ep141: Angelica in Europe: John Church, London Society, and Diplomacy — Molly Beer — Following ratification of the peace treaty, Angelica and her husband sailed to Paris to collect outstanding payments owed by the French government. John Carter leveraged the war

S8 Ep141: Angelica and the Founders: The Revolution and the Hamilton Connection — Molly Beer — Beer examines Angelica's pivotal role during the American Revolution, including her service alongside Rochambeau's army, traveling to Yorktown shortly after delivering he

S8 Ep141: Angelica Schuyler: Albany, Elopement, and the Start of the Revolution — Molly Beer — Beer discusses her book Angelica, focusing on Angelica Schuyler Church, daughter of General Philip Schuyler. Her mother, Katherine, oversaw construction of their Albany r

S8 Ep141: From X-Rays to Motion Pictures: Expanding the Photographic Medium — Anika Burgess — Burgess traces the expansion of photographic technology beyond conventional image capture. She examines Alice Austin's intimate and playful photographs documenting her soc

S8 Ep141: Photography and Social Justice: Riis, Watkins, and the Question of Truth — Anika Burgess — Burgess demonstrates how photography became a transformative tool for social advocacy and reform. Jacob Riis, a newspaper journalist documenting Manhattan's tenemen

S8 Ep141: Early Photography's Scientific Reach: Lunar and Underwater Photography — Anika Burgess — Burgess explores early photography's critical scientific applications, noting that François Arago predicted the daguerreotype would enable detailed mapping of the lun

S8 Ep141: The Genius of Early Photography: Nadar, Daguerre, and Dangerous Chemistry — Anika Burgess — Burgess details the risky and adventurous origins of photography as a practical medium. She examines Nadar, a visionary figure who deployed a giant balloon named L

S8 Ep140: PREVIEW — Charles Gasparino — Go Woke, Go Broke: CEOs, Groupthink, and the Radicalization of Corporate America. Gasparino argues in Go Woke, Go Broke that the radicalization of American corporate leadership originated at the executive level, not within HR

S8 Ep139: PREVIEW — Molly Beer — Angelica Schuyler, Alexander Hamilton, and the Schuyler Family in the Revolution. Beer discusses her book examining Angelica Schuyler, an exceptionally well-born young Dutch woman and Revolutionary War hero. Angelica, the older sist

S8 Ep139: PREVIEW — Molly Beer — Angelica Schuyler Church and London's Educated Women. Angelica Schuyler Church moved to London following the war, establishing herself as a prominent figure among educated women residing in Mayfair. Angelica joined the Blue Stocking

S8 Ep139: PREVIEW — Anika Burgess — The Invention of the Daguerreotype and Early Photography. Burgess examines the invention of the daguerreotype, the genesis of practical photography, by Louis Daguerre. Daguerre, who previously created innovative dioramas, partner