History

An understanding of our history is as crucial to a successful democratic society as it is essential to the well-examined life of the individual. As historian Howard Zinn told Bill Moyers, “I think the more people learn about the past… the more that they will understand that it is possible for people to change the world.” Start your understanding with some of the series and specials below.

EDITORS' PICKS

Everyone Should Be Entitled to Medicare
Bill recalls his days with Lyndon Johnson as they prepared to sell Medicare to Congress, and makes the case for why everyone should be entitled to it today.
Facing Our Racial Past
Bill and Khalil Gibran Muhammad discuss the importance of confronting the contradictions of America’s past.
From D-Day to the Rhine (1990)

EXPLORE History

Ep. 5: Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth — ‘Love and the Goddess’

March 8, 2013 | Joseph Campbell and The Power of Myth (1988)

Joseph Campbell traces the beginning of love, as we think of it today, to twelfth-century troubadours. Continue reading

Encore: What We Can Learn From Lincoln

March 7, 2013 | Moyers & Company

Tony Kushner, who wrote the screenplay for Lincoln, talks about America’s 16th president and “the history lesson of politics.” Continue reading

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., center, accompanied by fellow House Democrats, leads a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013, to discuss the reintroduction of the Violence Against Women Act. Congressional Democrats have renewed their push to revive the key federal program that protects women against domestic violence. They sought to diminish Republican objections that blocked passage of the legislation last year by removing a provision that would increase visas for immigrant victims of domestic abuse. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Five Bills That Would Have Been Game Changers for Women

March 4, 2013 | News & Notes

The Violence Against Women Act passed Congress last week. Now take a look at other legislation that could have made a difference for women, but didn’t. Continue reading

Full Show: Fighting Creeping Creationism

March 1, 2013 | Moyers & Company

Zack Kopplin on fighting the onslaught of creationism and Susan Jacoby on the challenges of free thinking in America. Continue reading

Susan Jacoby on Secularism and Free Thinking

March 1, 2013

Susan Jacoby talks with Bill about the role secularism and intellectual curiosity have played throughout America’s history. Continue reading

Preview: Fighting Creeping Creationism

February 26, 2013

Preview this week’s show about one teenager’s fight against the onslaught of creationism in public schools, and the challenges of free thinking in America. Continue reading