American History Hit - Podcast Rankings and reviews

This show has an engaging host who obviously loves history and speaking with his expert guests, most of whom are delightful. I was bored by American history in high school but didn’t want to remain ignorant about it as I became an adult. These podcasts explain a wide range of famous people and events in an enjoyable way.

I tried several history Podcasts, but this one is the best. It is so informative. The host & guests paint a poignant picture and bring you back to the period they are discussing. I could not recommend it more.

8/22/24 Update: Recent episodes have begun to lean toward political proselytizing rather than historical education. Disappointing considering some of the topics used to be engaging and non-partisan. Clearly, Wildman favors hyperbolic storytelling that reflects his political stances rather than letting his guests share their expertise.

The delivery of this podcast is spot on. I enjoy the subject matter, which makes me want to do more research on the topics

I’m giving this podcast a one star review because of the incessant fat shaming during the episode on William Howard Taft. I stopped listening after the seven-minute mark because the comments on his weight were already excessive.

Taft is a former US president and former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He has given this country more to discuss about him than his weight alone.

Overall, this podcast is pretty good. It has a nice variety of topics, and it’s both accessible enough for anyone but with enough depth for more avid history fans.

I’ve noticed a bunch of reviews saying it’s gotten increasingly liberal/progressive/left… that does seem to be a trend, and while it’s not necessarily my speed, it comes with the territory with academics sometimes, so to this point I’ve kind of shrugged.

What finally got me was listening to the James K. Polk episode… inserting a computer-voice over the guest, replacing her use of the terms “slaves” and “Indians” with “enslaved people” and “Native Americans” is really just a bit much.
I get that there are different opinions on which terms to use, but no one is going to be offended or crushed or anything like that by hearing the words “Indians” or “slaves.” While some may not prefer them, they are neither slurs nor are they pejorative terms.

I enjoy different perspectives from my own, so leftward slant isn’t really the biggest problem for me… it’s the editing over non-offensive, commonly accepted terms. If you’re going to use one term or another, fine, but editing over someone who uses the other - with a computer-voice - is just weird and a bit 1984-like.