A universally popular song and the Olympics are probably the two most powerful unifying forces that exist in American culture.
popular culture
Bruce Springsteen or Ta-Nehisi Coates?
Dave Masciotra compares Bruce Springsteen’s liberalism with Ta-Nehisi Coates’s progressivism: By the turn of the century, the New Jersey native had already established himself as a rock and roll legend. But his artistic reaction to 9/11 enhanced his importance. Less […]
Trumpism is straight out of the 1980s
Maybe when Trump says “Make America Great Again” he has the 1980s in mind. Here is a taste of Michael Grasso’s Jacobin piece, “Donald Trump and the ’80s Aesthetic“: When Terry “Hulk Hogan” Bollea stood onstage at the Republican National […]
The Author’s Corner with Michael T. Bertrand
Michael T. Bertrand is Professor of History at Tennessee State University. This interview is based on his new book, Southern History Remixed: On Rock ’n’ Roll and the Dilemma of Race (University Press of Florida, 2024). JF: What led you […]
The Author’s Corner with Jennifer M. Black
Jennifer M. Black is Associate Professor and Program Director of History at Misericordia University. This interview is based on her new book, Branding Trust: Advertising and Trademarks in Nineteenth-Century America (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023). JF: What led you to […]
Yes, universities should offer courses on Taylor Swift
Should Harvard offer courses on Taylor Swift? Of course it should. Everyone is talking about a course at Harvard titled “Taylor Swift and Her World.” Here is some context from Stephanie Burt, the English professor who will be teaching the […]
The Author’s Corner with Aimee Loiselle
Aimee Loiselle is Assistant Professor of History at Central Connecticut State University. This interview is based on her new book, Beyond Norma Rae: How Puerto Rican and Southern White Women Fought for a Place in the American Working Class (University […]
Episode 122: “Springsteen, Joel, and the American Century”
In his new book Bridge & Tunnel Boys, historian Jim Cullen discusses how Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen represented what he calls “the metropolitan sound of the American century.” In this episode of the podcast, we talk with Cullen about how Joel […]
The Judeo-Christian roots of Superman
Roy Schwartz is the author of Superman Circumcised?: The Complete Jewish History of the World’s Greatest Hero. Here is a taste of his piece at Literary Hub, “How Superman Became a Christ-Like Figure in American Culture“: With the onset of […]
John McWhorter just took me down memory lane
Thanks to McWhorter‘s recent piece at The New York Times, I spent way too much time this morning watching old Looney Tunes clips. Here is a taste: During these times so utterly glum, I’m in a mood to share a […]
Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn on Bridgerton
If you like Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn’s writing at Current, you will also enjoy her recent piece at Zocalo Public Square. Here is a taste: “Everything is broken,” repeated the chorus of a Bob Dylan song from his 1989 album Oh Mercy—strings (guitar, […]