media — Bunk History

Viewing 121–150 of 257 results. Go to first page

Jeff Bezos against a red D.C. background with the Washington Post newspaper on the bottom half

Is Jeff Bezos Selling Out the Washington Post?

The Amazon founder was once the newspaper’s savior; now journalists are fleeing as the paper that brought down Nixon struggles under Trump’s second term.

by Clare Malone via The New Yorker on May 12, 2025

Cartoon drawing of a child hiding behind a man.

How Robert Crumb Channeled Mid-Century Teenage Angst Into Art

Dan Nadel on the formative awkward adolescence of an iconic American cartoonist.

by Dan Nadel via Literary Hub on April 15, 2025

Shots from various conspiracy films of the 20th century.

The Life and Death of Conspiracy Cinema

Why did Hollywood lose interest in making paranoid thrillers? Was it a change in the culture? Or a change in the marketplace?

by T. M. Brown via The Nation on March 31, 2025

Richard Nixon scowling.

The Alarming Effort To Rewrite the History of Watergate

For decades, politicians distanced themselves from Nixon's Watergate legacy. Now, some are advancing a new history.

by Michael Koncewicz via Made By History on March 24, 2025

How the Red Scare Reshaped American Politics

At its height, the political crackdown felt terrifying and all-encompassing. What can we learn from how the movement unfolded—and from how it came to an end?

by Beverly Gage via The New Yorker on March 10, 2025

Actress moves away from a microphone held a red hand.

How the Red Scare Shaped American Television

The fear of communism silenced actors, writers and producers, altering the entertainment industry for decades.

by Carol Stabile via PBS on February 28, 2025

Arthur Morgan from video game Red Dead Redemption 2 sporting a gun and cowboy hat.

Cult of the Cowboy: Inside the Toxic Adoration of an All-American Obsession

Video games, violence and the enduring allure of the vigilante hero.

by Rachel Wagner via Literary Hub on February 26, 2025

A young boy stares at the camera while members of the Black Panther Party distribute free clothing to the public.

The Black Panther Party's Under-Appreciated Legacy of Love

The Black Panther Party illustrated how communal love can be a powerful agent for change and empowerment.

by Mickell Carter via Made By History on February 19, 2025

Donald Trump holding up a fist.

The Man Madison Warned Us Against

He authored the Constitution to forestall the rise of a despotic president. We’ll soon see if those safeguards suffice.

by Harold Meyerson via The American Prospect on February 17, 2025

Cover of The Moving Image by Peter Kaufman.

The Power of the Moving Image

Video has become our dominant cultural medium, yet we lack reliable archives for the audiovisual record.

by Peter B. Kaufman via Los Angeles Review of Books on February 11, 2025

A drawing of a person staring at two different smartphones, with robotic arms holding their head in place.

What If the Attention Crisis Is All a Distraction?

From the pianoforte to the smartphone, each wave of tech has sparked fears of brain rot. But the problem isn’t our ability to focus—it’s what we’re focusing on.

by Daniel Immerwahr via The New Yorker on January 20, 2025

1999 Yugoslavian stamp depicting a NATO jet launching a missile at an oil refinery.

Stamps Capture Unchanging Face of U.S. Violence Abroad

Countries have also used their postal systems to fight back against aggression.

by Matin Modarressi via Foreign Policy in Focus on January 6, 2025

George HW Bush, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, and Richard Nixon at the Reagan Library opening.

Jimmy Carter Was a Successful (Conservative) President

Common conceptions of Carter are all wrong because they don’t acknowledge a crucial reality: he was a conservative.

by Paul Matzko via Made By History on December 29, 2024

Jesus Jones on stage.

Right Here, Right Now: Jesus Jones and the Post-Cold War Moment

For a brief window at the end of the Cold War, British alt-rock band Jesus Jones tapped into global feelings of optimism and hope.

by Dion Georgiou via The Saturday Evening Post on December 24, 2024

Portrait of Morris Hillquit.

When Socialists Run for NYC Mayor, Good Things Can Happen

Socialist legislator Zohran Mamdani is running for New York City mayor against a corrupt, unpopular mayor. Morris Hillquit did the same thing a century ago.

by Charlie Dulik via Jacobin on December 19, 2024

A drawing of the inside of a printing mill, depicting workers printing art.

The Midnight World

Glenn Fleishman’s history of the comic strip as a technological artifact vividly restores the world of newspaper printing—gamboge, Zip-A-Tone, flongs, and all.

by Michael Chabon via New York Review of Books on November 28, 2024

Berkeley students and protesters gather during a protest and celebration at Berkeley, California in 1969.

The Left’s Reversal on Free Speech

Historically, liberals defended the First Amendment and our free speech rights. Now, too many on the left seek to undermine constitutional protections.

by Patrick M. Garry via Law & Liberty on November 18, 2024

A masked man with a sword waves an American flag at the face of a masked man with a stick on the anniversary of the January 6 riot.

Hyperpolitics In America

When polarization lacks clear consequences, Americans are left with "a grin without a cat: a politics with only weak policy influence or institutional ties."

by Anton Jäger via New Left Review on October 31, 2024

1937 ad showing three women in underwear.

From Torpedo Bras to Whale Tails: A Brief History of Women’s Underwear

The popular reception of thongs, bras, boy shorts and other intimate items.

by Nina Edwards via Literary Hub on October 24, 2024

Soldiers in combat gear stand by an advertisement for "America's Army," a military strategy game from 2002.

Video Games Are a Key Battleground in the Propaganda War

When video games went mainstream, the Pentagon realized their potential as a promotional tool, spending hundreds of millions of dollars on war-based games.

by Marijam Did via Jacobin on October 13, 2024

Emmett Till's photo is seen on his grave marker in 2002.

Journalist Withheld Information About Emmett Till’s Murder, Documents Show

William Bradford Huie’s newly released research notes show he suspected more than two men tortured and killed Emmett Till, but suggest that he left it out.

by Gillian Brockell via Retropolis on August 29, 2024

Reddy Kilowatt mascott emerging from an outlet.

The Energy Mascot that Electrified America

An animation historian on Reddy Kilowatt, the cartoon charged with electrifying everything in the early 20th century.

by Mike Munsell, Kirsten Moana Thompson via Heatmap on August 5, 2024

Trent Reznor

Knots, Ties, and Lines: “The Downward Spiral” at Thirty

Nine Inch Nails, the Manson Family, and the contradictions of Los Angeles.

by Gianni de Falco via Cleveland Review of Books on July 16, 2024

Gold Dust on the Air: Television Anthology Drama and Midcentury American Culture by Molly A. Schneider. University of Texas Press. 238 pages.

The Myth America Show

The anthology drama provided a venue for discourses on American national identity during the massive cultural, economic, and political changes occurring at midcentury.

by Josie Torres Barth via Los Angeles Review of Books on July 13, 2024

President Joe Biden speaking at campaign event.

The Arguments for Biden 2024 Keep Getting Worse

No, "history" does not tell us that the Democrats shouldn't change their nominee.

by Eric Levitz via Vox on July 9, 2024

Star-Herb Medicines and Teas for all Diseases, 1923.

How Government Helped Birth the Advertising Industry

Advertising went from being an embarrassing activity to a legitimate part of every company’s business plans—despite scant evidence that it worked.

by Livia Gershon, Daniel Navon via JSTOR Daily on May 17, 2024

Earth First! protestors on a pond, and getting arrested.

Earth First!

Earth First! was founded in 1980 to defend wildlife and wilderness areas more directly and uncompromisingly than most environmental groups.

by Daniel Vollaro via AdirondackLife on April 22, 2024

Collage of security camera image and newspaper articles from the Columbine shooting.

The Columbine-Killers Fan Club

A quarter century on, the school shooters’ mythology has propagated a sprawling subculture that idolizes murder and mayhem.

by Dave Cullen via The Atlantic on April 19, 2024

Digital image of Lindsay Lohan, saying "Lindsay all grown up."

Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon

This tale of two girlhoods, Shirley Temple’s and Lindsay Lohan’s, sheds light on what “woman” means in the world of eroticized youth.

by Katherine Fusco via Dilettante Army on April 16, 2024

Black women gathered in discussion for an episode of "Black Journal."

“The Black Woman”

Black women activism within documentary films in the 1960s United States.

by Manar Ellethy via Journal of the History of Ideas Blog on April 10, 2024

brought to you by

© Bunk History