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History News Network

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Roundup Top 10!


The Year Nixon Fell Apart

by John A. Farrell

The year was 1970, and the paranoid, stressed president starting drinking, stealing away from the White House and, eventually, going after his enemies.


How new is “fake news”?

by James W. Cortada

What history teaches us is that American politics seemed to generate more fake news than almost any other activity of the nation.


The Misuse of the Moynihan Report

by Daniel Geary

Nearly all uses of the Moynihan Report in 2015 fit either of the established patterns: attributing persistent inequality to African Americans’ flawed familial and cultural values or calling for “national action” to redress persistent racial inequality.


When Nixon Floated—Then Gaslit—the First Female Supreme Court Candidate

by Gil Troy

The notorious president came close to naming a woman to the Supreme Court, sneering: ‘One thing about the woman conservative. These bastards can’t vote against her.’


Human evolution: why we’re more than great apes

by Robin Dunbar

In this shortened excerpt from "Human Evolution: Our Brains and Our Behavior," evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar explains the link between culture and the human brain—and how that connection distinguishes us from other primates.


World War I was a turning point for the labor movement

by Elizabeth McKillen

The Wilson era and its call for capitalist values spread abroad was opposed with more tenacity than we often recognize, by workers and socialists involved in the labor movement.


Did the Muslim World Really Fall for Hitler?

by John Broich

A famous photo suggests that fascism was popular in the Middle East during World War II. The history says otherwise.


When Nations Apologize

by Edwin Battistella

National apologies are a big deal: they acknowledge the past to help move everyone forward. No wonder they’re so hard.


The Ugly History Behind Trump’s Attacks on Civil Servants

by Landon R. Y. Storrs

President Trump’s criticisms of government workers have something in common with Joe McCarthy’s.


Not Your Grandma’s Civil Rights Strategy

by Jon Else

In the 60s activities could look to Washington for help. Not in the Trump era.