Each week on ‘The Returns,’ we pull a different episode from our own archive to help put our present politics into historical context.

This episode, Epiphany, first ran in 2021, as the finale to Season 2, which was all about lies, fakes, frauds, and hoaxes. In this episode, Jill Lepore takes listeners down the winding path from the little-known Iron Mountain hoax of the late 1960s to the Capitol insurrection on January 6th, 2021.

Each week on ‘The Returns,’ we pull a different episode from our own archive to help put our present politics into historical context.
This episode, Epiphany, first ran in 2021, as the finale to Season 2, which was all about lies, fakes, frauds, and hoaxes. In this episode, Jill Lepore takes listeners down the winding path from the little-known Iron Mountain hoax of the late 1960s to the Capitol insurrection on January 6th, 2021.

The Last Archive​ is a show about the history of truth, and the historical context for our current fake news, post-truth moment. It’s a show about how we know what we know, and why it seems, these days, as if we don’t know anything at all anymore. The show is written & hosted by Ben Naddaff-Hafrey, and was created by the historian Jill Lepore. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

The Last Archive​ is a show about the history of truth, and the historical context for our current fake news, post-truth moment. It’s a show about how we know what we know, and why it seems, these days, as if we don’t know anything at all anymore. The show is written &amp; hosted by Ben Naddaff-Hafrey, and was created by the historian Jill Lepore. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

A podcast about the history of evidence written and hosted by New Yorker writer, author, and celebrated historian Jill Lepore

The Last Archive

The Returns: Epiphany

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/1bb40d44-51da-4f23-b722-b12400f71266/transcript

Here's a preview of a new audiobook we think you'll enjoy, Blockers: an inside look at the early days of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, as told by the public servants it targeted and Michael Lewis, one of America’s best storytellers.

Blockers. It wasn’t a compliment. In the new Washington, it was the worst thing you could be—especially if you worked in the federal government and wanted to keep your job. A Blocker was a holdover, an impediment, someone who didn’t get the message—and, most of all, someone who didn’t belong.

Michael Lewis found six of them. 

Blockers is the story of people who believed they had a calling, who were convinced they were doing something the country couldn’t do without, and then discovered they were no longer wanted. One kept Americans’ most sensitive tax data out of the wrong hands and another made sure that politicians and civil servants played by the rules. One figured out how to stop wildfires from destroying suburban neighborhoods, another helped uncover the mysteries of cystic fibrosis.

There was also a security guard.

It should come as no surprise that the writer who made subprime mortgages gripping (The Big Short) and who turned baseball statistics into poetry (Moneyball) could transform the first two years of the second Trump administration into a thriller about federal employees. But he does.

And he does something else. He puts before us a clear question: If these public servants can’t survive in government today, then what does that say about us?

Get Blockers now at blockers.fm.

Here's a preview of a new audiobook we think you'll enjoy, Blockers: an inside look at the early days of Trump&rsquo;s Department of Government Efficiency, as told by the public servants it targeted and Michael Lewis, one of America&rsquo;s best storytellers.
Blockers. It wasn&rsquo;t a compliment. In the new Washington, it was the worst thing you could be&mdash;especially if you worked in the federal government and wanted to keep your job. A Blocker was a holdover, an impediment, someone who didn&rsquo;t get the message&mdash;and, most of all, someone who didn&rsquo;t belong.
Michael Lewis found six of them.&nbsp;
Blockers is the story of people who believed they had a calling, who were convinced they were doing something the country couldn&rsquo;t do without, and then discovered they were no longer wanted. One kept Americans&rsquo; most sensitive tax data out of the wrong hands and another made sure that politicians and civil servants played by the rules. One figured out how to stop wildfires from destroying suburban neighborhoods, another helped uncover the mysteries of cystic fibrosis.
There was also a security guard.
It should come as no surprise that the writer who made subprime mortgages gripping (The Big Short) and who turned baseball statistics into poetry (Moneyball) could transform the first two years of the second Trump administration into a thriller about federal employees. But he does.
And he does something else. He puts before us a clear question: If these public servants can&rsquo;t survive in government today, then what does that say about us?
Get Blockers now at <a href="https://www.pushkin.fm/audiobooks/blockers">blockers.fm</a>.

Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State | A Preview of Michael Lewis's New Audiobook

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/cb1db3e3-ea46-4817-8e94-b4da00fcdce6/transcript

In the 1960s, a right-wing organization led by a former candy tycoon rose to fame in America for their anti-communist campaigns. They called themselves the John Birch Society. Then, they tried to take over the Parent-Teacher Association. This week, what the battle between the two organizations tells us about the fate of American politics, and the history of your Halloween candy.

In the 1960s, a right-wing organization led by a former candy tycoon rose to fame in America for their anti-communist campaigns. They called themselves the John Birch Society. Then, they tried to take over the Parent-Teacher Association. This week, what the battle between the two organizations tells us about the fate of American politics, and the history of your Halloween candy.

John Birch vs. the PTA

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/c976024a-96a1-4cdc-a47d-b21901693d51/transcript

Jesse Owens spent the rest of his life retelling the story of the 1936 games and his encounter with Luz Long. We trace the evolution of a tall tale, discovering the hidden life of one of America’s iconic sports heroes.

This is part two of a two-part crossover from Revisionist History’s ‘Hitler’s Olympics’ series. To listen to the whole series, head over to the Revisionist History show page.

Jesse Owens spent the rest of his life retelling the story of the 1936 games and his encounter with Luz Long. We trace the evolution of a tall tale, discovering the hidden life of one of America’s iconic sports heroes.
This is part two of a two-part crossover from Revisionist History’s ‘Hitler’s Olympics’ series. To listen to the whole series, head over to the Revisionist History <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968">show page</a>.

Part 2: Long Jump, Tall Tale

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/6b1b0f39-a327-454d-8f35-b20401478bc4/transcript

The Returns: Epiphany

In 1 playlist(s)

The Last Archive

Social links

Follow podcast

Recent clips