Best Atomic Drop Podcasts (2025)

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Afghan businessman to MTV mogul: how Tom Freston revolutionized youth culture | The Moynihan Report 56:03

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5h ago56:03

56:03

Tom Freston's story is a compelling journey of media creation fueled by unconventional experiences and a zeal for the non-mainstream. His memoir, Unplugged Adventures: From MTV to Timbuktu, chronicles his life, from an eight-year stint in India and Afghanistan on the hippie trail where he was a businessman running a successful clothing empire (a ve…

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Why Did Rome Fall? Wrong Question. How Did it Last 2,000 Years Despite Changing its Religion, Language, and Government? 53:46

1d ago53:46

53:46

Rome began as a pagan, Latin-speaking city state in central Italy during the early Iron Age and ended as a Christian, Greek-speaking empire as the age of gunpowder dawned. Everything about it changed, except its Roman identity. This was due to a unique willingness among Romans to include new people as citizens, an openness to new ideas, and an unpa…

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AI is NOT replacing your job, it's "degrading" it. here's how | The Moynihan Report 52:46

5d ago52:46

52:46

Signal President Meredith Whittaker joins The Moynihan Report for a deep dive into the AI industry, exposing how artificial intelligence is often just a marketing term designed to degrade jobs rather than replace them. An ex-Googler, Whittaker breaks down the dangerous concentration of power within Big Tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Micros…

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The Real Deadwood: A Gold Rush Town Built in a War Zone but Obliterated in an Inferno 37:30

7d ago37:30

37:30

Gunslinging, gold-panning, stagecoach robbing, whiskey guzzling – the myth and infamy of the American West is synonymous with its most famous town: Deadwood, South Dakota. The storied mining town sprang up in early 1876 and came raining down in ashes only three years later, destined to become food for the imagination and a nostalgic landmark that n…

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How one man's videos put him in Andrew Tate's legal crosshairs | The Moynihan Report 1:03:21

7d ago1:03:21

1:03:21

In this episode, Michael Moynihan chats with Nathan Livingstone, the Aussie filmmaker who found himself in the crosshairs of the "most Googled man," Andrew Tate. Nathan details his journey from a forklift driver fired over COVID mandates to a leading chronicler exposing Tate's "unique evil"; a mission that's now landed him in a major defamation law…

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America's Pacific Dawn: The Spanish-American War Ushered In Global Reach and Savage Conflict 55:59

9d ago55:59

55:59

Clara Barton, the founder of the Red Cross, was in Havana in 1898, investigating the terrible conditions endured by Cubans whom the Spanish government had forced into concentration camps, where an estimated 425,000 people died of disease and starvation. While she was there, the American warship USS Maine exploded in Havana's harbor, which served as…

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The 'Cheney-to-Trump' pipeline: how the VP paved the way for MAGA | The Moynihan Report 1:01:25

12d ago1:01:25

1:01:25

In this episode, Michael Moynihan kicks things off by dissecting Bill Crystal's bizarre "inner social Democrat" tweet celebrating Eugene Debs, contrasting it with Debs' actual call to "abolish the capitalist system." This segues into busting the popular myth that socialists just "want Sweden"; as someone who lived there, Moynihan reveals Sweden is …

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The President and the Emperor Episode Two 1:08:05

12d ago1:08:05

1:08:05

The extraordinary inside story of the most controversial decision in the history of modern warfare - the order to drop the atomic bomb. Drawn from first-hand accounts of those involved and declassified top secret American and Japanese documents from 1945, this documentary drama unfolds through the eyes of the two people at the centre of this world …

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The Unhealed Wounds of WW2 POWs and Combat Veterans 50:10

14d ago50:10

50:10

Nearly 16.4 million Americans served in the U.S. Armed Forces in World War II, and for millions of survivors, the fighting left many of them physically and mentally broken for life. There was a 25% death rate in Japanese POW camps like Bataan, where starvation and torture were rampant, and fierce battles against suicidal Imperial Japanese forces, l…

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The impact of election on future of the Democratic Party with Don Calloway | The Moynihan Report 1:12:33

14d ago1:12:33

1:12:33

On this episode of The Moynihan Report, host Michael Moynihan dives right into the 2025 Election Day action, covering the NYC mayoral race with Zohran Mamdani and the big governor's races in Virginia and New Jersey. He also gets into the political reactions surrounding Dick Cheney's death, calling out a pretty disrespectful tweet from NYC Councilma…

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Robert McNamara Thought Enough Data Could Win Any War. Instead, It Led America to the Vietnam Quagmire 1:00:21

16d ago1:00:21

1:00:21

Robert S. McNamara, who was Secretary of Defense during JFK and LBJ’s administrations, and one of the chief architects of the Vietnam war, made a shocking confession in his 1995 memoir. He said “We were wrong, terribly wrong.” McNamara believed this as early as 1965, that the Vietnam War was unwinnable. Yet, instead of urging U.S. forces to exit, h…

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EXCLUSIVE: The President And The Emperor Part 2 Trailer 2:04

17d ago2:04

2:04

First Look Trailer for Part 2 of The President and the Emperor starring Clifton Truman Daniel as President Harry S Truman, Sadao Ueda as Emperor Hirohito and Samuel Barnett as Phillip Oppenheimer. Episode 2 coming soon..... The President and the Emperor is written by Guy Smith. The director is Jonathan Kydd. Produced by Ashley Byrne Executive Produ…

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The Philistine Connection: Do the Roots of October 7 Go Back 3,000 Years? 36:24

21d ago36:24

36:24

The October 7th attacks of Hamas on Israel were an unprecedented, surprise incursion by land, sea, and air that stunned the world and prompted Israel to declare war. The attacks, which included massacres in Israeli communities and a music festival, resulted in the deaths of over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals and the capture of some 251 hosta…

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The great right-wing unraveling | The Moynihan Report 1:07:38

21d ago1:07:38

1:07:38

Bridget Phetasy, host of 2WAY’s Real America, joins Michael Moynihan to discuss how the right’s top podcasters are getting louder, brasher, and somehow even more absurd. Tune in as we unpack the spectacularly insane world of Tucker, Candace, and the rest of the conservative circus. Subscribe to the YouTube! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo…

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The Thucydides Trap: How A Rising Athens Made The Peloponnesian War Inevitable 46:29

23d ago46:29

46:29

The Peloponnesian War is considered one of the most famous wars of the ancient world not only because it was a massive and devastating conflict that reshaped the Greek world, but also because its thorough documentation by the historian Thucydides transformed how we understand history and war. On the face of it, the Peloponnesian War, fought over 20…

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Can humor actually STOP fascism? (the answer may surprise you) | The Moynihan Report 1:09:41

26d ago1:09:41

1:09:41

In a "very Nazi-heavy show" , Michael Moynihan sits down with comedian Danny Polishchuk to discuss his viral satirical sketch "Counting Jews in Things," and the alarming number of viewers who believe he's a real antisemite . This kicks off a wider discussion on the mainstreaming of antisemitism and bizarre political scandals, including a Democratic…

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How the Left's 2020 'peak dominance' created the inevitable Trump backlash | The Moynihan Report 1:17:45

27d ago1:17:45

1:17:45

In this episode of The Moynihan Report, host Michael Moynihan sits down with Thomas Chatterton Williams, author of The Summer of Our Discontent, to analyze the period from 2020 to the present. They discuss how the "crazy" cultural "excesses" and "exaggerated claims of oppression" stemming from 2020 created an inevitable and "harsh" backlash that he…

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The Free French Army in North Africa, 1940-1945 49:37

28d ago49:37

49:37

One of the principal architects of Allied Victory in North Africa during World War Two was French General Louis Dio. His importance in North Africa lies in his role as a key leader of the Free French forces and a trusted subordinate to General Philippe Leclerc. He participated in every battle from Douala to the Fezzan Campaigns in the early 1940s. …

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An Inventor’s Quest to Build a Pneumatic Subway System in 1870s New York 45:11

30d ago45:11

45:11

Alfred Beach built America’s first operational subway in secret beneath 1860s Manhattan, decades before the city’s official electric subway line in 1904. He designed and commissioned a 300-foot-long, eight-foot-diameter tunnel 20 feet underground, built with a tunneling machine he invented for this purpose. The car moved quietly and silently, pushe…

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Spirited Rivalry: Did Ireland or Scotland Invent Whisky? 48:53

1M ago48:53

48:53

There’s a divide between Scotland and Ireland as fierce as the Protestant/Catholic split during the Thirty Years’ War or the battles between Sunnis and Shias in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s. It’s the debate over who invented whisky. Both Ireland and Scotland claim to have originated the spirit. Ireland cites its early monastic traditions and the …

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Ex-CNN producer: the corporate media model is officially DEAD | The Moynihan Report 1:05:42

1M ago1:05:42

1:05:42

In this episode of the Moynihan Report, host Michael Moynihan and media critic Steve Krakauer analyze the rapidly changing media landscape, beginning with Donald Trump's "enormous achievement" regarding a hostage release and the media's unified pushback against new restrictive Pentagon guidelines for journalists. The conversation's core focuses on …

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The Horse That Ate the Legion: Rome’s Cavalry's Triumph Over the Infantry 41:21

1M ago41:21

41:21

The cavalry 'wings' that probed ahead of the Roman Army played a key role in its campaigns of conquest, masking its marching flanks and seeking to encircle enemies in battle. However, at the very beginning of Rome’s history, it didn’t even have a cavalry, and relied on Greek-style phalanx formations instead. It began as a small cavalry arm provided…

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Dexter Filkins on why Biden’s "nice guy” foreign policy FAILED | The Moynihan Report 1:03:04

1M ago1:03:04

1:03:04

Dexter Price Filkins is an American journalist known primarily for his coverage of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for The New York Times. He currently writes for The New Yorker. Subscribe to our YouTube! (0:00) Intro (0:40) Trump's Middle East Success (3:05) Israel's Regional Military Victories (7:21) Dexter Filkins (15:33) Israeli Intelligence O…

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Beyond Joan of Arc and Agincourt: How the 100 Years War Crushed Medieval Europe and Launched its Global Order 58:41

1M ago58:41

58:41

Modern France and Britain were forged in the fires of the Hundred Years War, a century-long conflict that produced deadly English longbowmen, Joan of Arc’s heavenly visions, and a massive death toll from Scotland to the Low Countries. The traditional beginning and end of the Hundred Years' War are conventionally marked by the start of open conflict…

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The Bari Weiss/CBS news deal | The Moynihan Report 1:10:22

1M ago1:10:22

1:10:22

Journalist and friend of the podcast Olivia Reingold comes on to talk about Bari Weiss, the new editor-in-chief at CBS. Subscribe to the YouTube! (0:00) Introduction (3:04) Free Press Reactions (33:46) October 7th Anniversary (49:00) Political Violence Discussion (01:01:09) Audience Q&A (01:10:00) Final Thoughts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva…

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Reverse Ellis Island: American Migrants Who Fought for Mussolini and Built Stalin’s USSR 38:33

1M ago38:33

38:33

By History Unplugged

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"Thank God for the Atomic Bomb" | The Moynihan Report 1:01:45

2M ago1:01:45

1:01:45

Richard B. Frank war historian and veteran of the Vietnam war. He is one of the foremost experts on Pacific campaign of World War II and has written several books on the subject, including Tower of Skulls: A History of The Asia-Pacific War July 1937-May 1942. Subscribe on YouTube! (00:00:00) Introduction (00:07:10) Historical Context and Perspectiv…

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Don’t Use Rome as a Model of Why Societies Collapse; Use Crime Syndicates and Somalia Instead 49:42

2M ago49:42

49:42

12,000 years ago, human history changed forever when the egalitarian groups of hunter-gathering humans began to settle down and organize themselves into hierarchies. The few dominated the many, seizing control through violence. What emerged were “Goliaths”: large societies built on a collection of hierarchies that are also terrifyingly fragile, col…

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Assata Shakur was a murderer, so why is the media celebrating her? | The Moynihan Report 58:08

2M ago58:08

58:08

Bob Woodson joins Michael for a discussion about civil rights, political violence, and the passing of Assata Shakur. Subscribe to the YouTube! (00:00:00) Introduction (00:00:40) Political Violence Discussion (00:04:20) Assata Shakur (00:47:33) Black Panthers Legacy (00:52:31) Historical Black Achievement (00:57:45) Final Thoughts Hosted on Acast. S…

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A Union General Found a Loophole in the Fugitive Slave Act, Causing 1 Million Slaves to Flee North 45:21

2M ago45:21

45:21

After the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, enslaved people feared running away to the North, as their return was mandated, and they faced brutal punishment or even death upon return to deter others from escaping. But that changed during the Civil War. Black slaves in Confederate Virginia began hearing rumors that they could receive their …

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Moynihan: the media pretends we don't know the motive for political violence | The Moynihan Report 59:09

2M ago59:09

59:09

Dan Turrentine joins Michael for a discussion about the Democratic party's strategic failures, the internal conflict over its rising progressive wing, and the media's biased coverage of recent political violence. Subscribe to the YouTube! (00:00) Introduction (01:13) James Comey Indictment (06:48) Democratic Missteps (30:19) Media Influence (39:30)…

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The Civil War’s Brutal Finale: A War of Attrition as Terrible as WW2-Pacific and the Napoleonic Wars 47:55

2M ago47:55

47:55

In 1864, the American Civil War reached a critical juncture with Ulysses S. Grant’s Overland Campaign, including the brutal battles of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania, which claimed over 60,000 casualties, surpassing Gettysburg as the Americas’ deadliest clash. Abraham Lincoln faced a contentious re-election against George B. McClellan, while Confe…

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Why I'm defending Jimmy Kimmel (and it's not why you think) | The Moynihan Report 1:01:55

2M ago1:01:55

1:01:55

Mike Pesca and Michael Moynihan are here to talk about the return of Jimmy Kimmel—was it the perfect comedy feint, half retreat, half sucker punch, or something else? Subscribe on YouTube! (00:00) Introduction (01:14) Jimmy Kimmel's Return (07:29) Media Bias (28:19) Conspiracy Theories (33:20) Antifa and Domestic Terrorism (38:52) Political Violenc…

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Camp David Looks Like a 1970s Lakeside Retreat. Why is it the Site of the World’s Biggest Political Summits? 41:42

2M ago41:42

41:42

Camp David, nestled in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains, spans about 125 acres, making it significantly smaller than other presidential getaways like Lyndon B. Johnson’s sprawling 2,700-acre Texas ranch or the vast 1,000-acre Bush family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine. Compared to grand diplomatic venues like the White House or international summit …

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Colby Hall on Charlie Kirk, Jimmy Kimmel, and Donald J. Trump | The Moynihan Report 1:04:23

2M ago1:04:23

1:04:23

Michael Moynihan butts heads with Mediaite founder Colby Hall over political language. Subscribe to the YouTube. (00:00) Introduction (01:38) Media Dynamics (33:20) Political Obsession and Patriotism (36:43) Authoritarianism vs. Fascism (44:43) The Impact of Media and Political Violence (01:03:00) Final Thoughts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva…

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How British Scientists' Self-Experiments on Underwater Rebreathing Created D-Day Submarine Tech (And Nearly Killed Them in the Process) 53:29

2M ago53:29

53:29

In August 1942, over 7,000 Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, France, in a largely forgotten landing, with only a small fraction surviving unscathed. The raid failed due to poor planning and lack of underwater reconnaissance, which left the Allies unaware of strong German coastal defenses and underwater obstacles. Inadequate submersible…

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How Charlie Kirk’s assassination ‘created an army’ of new conservatives | The Moynihan Report 1:02:39

2M ago1:02:39

1:02:39

Journalist and author Mary Katherine Ham joins Michael Moynihan to talk about the recent assassination of Charlie Kirk. Subscribe to the YouTube! (00:00:00) Introduction (00:10:32) Political Violence History (00:21:12) Charlie Kirk's Assassination (00:31:36) Social Media Impact (00:42:34) Audience Questions (00:52:39) University Culture Discussion …

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Over 200,000 Allied Troops Tried and Failed to Crush the Soviet Revolution After World War One 41:20

2M ago41:20

41:20

The Allied Intervention into the Russian Civil War remains one of the most ambitious yet least talked about military ventures of the 20th century. Coinciding with the end of the first World War, some 180,000 troops from several countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Italy, Greece, Poland, and Romania, among others…

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Alan Dershowitz on Kirk, Epstein, and Netanyahu | The Moynihan Report 1:03:45

2M ago1:03:45

1:03:45

Alan Dershowitz talks to Moynihan about recent events surrounding the state of Israel, the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and why he was friends with Epstein? Subscribe to the YouTube! (00:00) Introduction (05:28) Charlie Kirk (15:35) Epstein (32:58) Israel (41:16) Palestine (48:02) Free Speech (59:27) The US and Israel (01:01:35) Final Thoughts Ho…

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EXCLUSIVE NEW DRAMA - The President and the Emperor - In Conversation with Samuel Barnett who plays Robert Oppenheimer 23:11

2M ago23:11

23:11

As we await the arrival of Part 2 of The President and the Emperor, acclaimed actor Samuel Barnett who plays 'father of the bomb' Robert Oppenheimer chats about taking on historical figures as characters - and what it means to play the famous nuclear scientist. Sam also reflects on the meticulousness of the script by Guy Smith and what he hopes lis…

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How the U.S. Occupation of Japan After WW2 Forged the Most Durable Peace of the 20th Century 1:00:19

2M ago1:00:19

1:00:19

During World War II, the U.S. and Japan were locked in bitter hatred, fueled by propaganda portraying each other as ruthless enemies, exemplified by dehumanizing "Tokyo Woe" posters in the U.S. and Japanese depictions of Americans as barbaric invaders. After the war, the feelings seemed to turn 180 degrees overnight. By the early 1950s, American se…

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Israel, Qatar, and the new Middle East with Eli Lake | The Moynihan Report 1:11:24

2M ago1:11:24

1:11:24

Eli Lake is a seasoned journalist and national security reporter, currently writing for The Free Press and hosting the "Breaking History" podcast. In this episode, Eli joins Michael Moynihan to discuss the recent Israeli strike in Qatar, the shifting dynamics of Middle Eastern alliances, and the broader implications for political Islam and Western …

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Homer Couldn't Have Written the Iliad, But He Probably Dictated it Word for Word 52:53

2M ago52:53

52:53

The Iliad is the world’s greatest epic poem—heroic battle and divine fate set against the Trojan War. Its beauty and profound bleakness are intensely moving, but great questions remain: Where, how, and when was it composed and why does it endure? To explore these questions is today’s guest, Robin Lane Fox, a scholar and teacher of Homer for over 40…

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Depression-Era Planners Thought They’d End Poverty with Public Housing. Instead, They Created the Projects 41:02

3M ago41:02

41:02

In the 1930s, New Deal-era technocrats devised a solution to homelessness and poverty itself. They believed that providing free or low-cost urban housing projects could completely eliminate housing scarcity. Planners envisioned urban communities that would propel their residents into the middle class, creating a flywheel of abundance where poverty …

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Is the internet a blessing or a curse? Moynihan & Rushkoff face off | The Moynihan Report 1:02:04

3M ago1:02:04

1:02:04

Is the internet good or bad? How can technology be directed? Doug Rushkoff is here to help us parse through these questions and more as we discuss his most recent book, Program or be Programmed: 11 Commands for the AI Future. Subscribe to the YouTube! (0:00) Introduction (1:37) Internet Beginnings (4:18) AI & Society (8:00) Big Tech (11:25) Polariz…

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The Alabaman Jacksonians Who Rejected the Confederacy and Marched with Sherman to the Sea 49:01

3M ago49:01

49:01

As the popular narrative goes, the Civil War was won when courageous Yankees triumphed over the South. But an aspect of the war that has remained little-known for 160 years is the Alabamian Union soldiers who played a decisive role in the Civil War, only to be scrubbed from the history books. One such group was the First Alabama Calvary, formed in …

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EXCLUSIVE NEW DRAMA: The President and the Emperor - Part One 36:57

3M ago36:57

36:57

The extraordinary inside story of the most controversial decision in the history of modern warfare - the order to drop the atomic bomb. Drawn from first-hand accounts of those involved and declassified top secret American and Japanese documents from 1945, this documentary drama unfolds through the eyes of the two people at the centre of this world …

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EXCLUSIVE NEW DRAMA - The President and the Emperor - In Conversation with Sadao Ueda who plays Emperor Hirohito 19:59

3M ago19:59

19:59

Ahead of the launch tomorrow (Sunday August 31st) of the epic new landmark drama about the decision to drop the first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, Sadao Ueda chats to Ashley Byrne about playing Emperor Hirohito. Sadao grew up in Japan and here he talks about what he was taught about the devastating events at school in the 1970s. …

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Frederick Douglass’s Private Writings on Abraham Lincoln, His Strong Critiques and Stronger Praise 49:05

3M ago49:05

49:05

Frederick Douglass made the strongest arguments for abolition in antebellum America because he made the case that abolition was not a mutation of the Founding Father’s vision of America, but a fulfillment of their promises of liberty for all. He had a lot riding on this personally – Douglas was born into slavery in Maryland around 1818, escaped to …

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Debating Charlottesville: Trump’s response and the free speech fight | The Moynihan Report 48:17

3M ago48:17

48:17

Author Deborah Baker joins The Moynihan Report to talk about her new book, Charlottesville: An American Story. The book covers the Unite the Right rally, where thousands of neo-Nazis, members of the KKK, and white supremacists protested the removal of Confederate monuments. Subscribe to The Moynihan Report on YouTube! (00:00) Introduction (04:25) U…