The History Wars and America at 250, with the Historian Jill Lepore

"The two-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence arrives during intense disputes about American history, as the Trump Administration demands a more glorifying view of the nation's past at federally run historical sites and in federally funded projects."

"She compares our moment with the bicentennial-which fell in the wake of the Vietnam War and the scandals of Richard Nixon's Presidency-in a conversation with the Yale historian Beverly Gage. Lepore looks at the nature of the country's war over history with Jelani Cobb, the dean of Columbia Journalism School and a staff writer at The New Yorker."

"They discuss the Donald Trump-approved “Freedom 250” projection on the Washington Monument, and talk about how Americans can meaningfully participate in the semiquincentennial. If “we're sitting around waiting for the occupant of the White House to tell us what American history means,” Lepore says, “you just kind of want to walk into traffic.”"

The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence arrives amid intense disputes over American history. The Trump Administration seeks a more glorifying portrayal of the nation’s past at federally run historical sites and in federally funded projects. A special radio episode hosted by Jill Lepore examines the responsibility of academic historians to influence public debate. The episode compares the current moment with the bicentennial that followed the Vietnam War and the Nixon scandals. Yale historian Beverly Gage and Jelani Cobb discuss the ongoing war over history and the role of media and scholarship. They address the Trump-approved “Freedom 250” projection on the Washington Monument and consider how Americans can participate meaningfully in the semiquincentennial.

Read at The New Yorker