This Day

Updated: 29 Jun 2025 • 793 episodes
www.thisdaypod.com

“This Day” takes you beyond the head-spinning headlines of today and into the unexpected historical moments that have shaped American politics. Hosted by Jody Avirgan (538), and historians Nicole Hemmer (Vanderbilt), and Kellie Carter Jackson (Wellesley), each episode explores a moment from that day in U.S. political history to uncover its lasting impact.  On Sunday episodes, Jody, Niki and Kellie react to current news with their usual mix of humor, analysis, and historical perspective. New episodes released Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Lots more on our Instagram page, YouTube, and newsletter. Find it all at thisdaypod.com. This Day is a proud member of the Radiotopia podcast network from PRX.

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This episode is part of our "Some Sunday Context" series where we are bringing you episodes from the archives and new conversations that try to give you a little historical perspective on current events. Today, an episode we recorded in 2021 about an anti-slavery protest in 1854, and how it brought up fundamental quest

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It's June 26th. This day in 1968, President Johnson signed what would be his last major act of domestic legislation -- an omnibus crime bill that drastically empowered and armed local police forces. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the conversation about public safety and policing shifted from the mid-to-late sixties

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It's June 24th. In 2003, Jimmy Wales, the owner of Wikipedia, made the decision to put the site under the ownership of a non-profit company. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why this decision made a huge difference for the site, and reflected a lot of the ways that the Internet has worked, and not worked, in the decades

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It's June 19th. Today is Juneteenth, a federal holiday in the United States marking the end of slavery. We're bringing you an episode from 2020 on the history of the date and the holiday -- but before that some thoughts from Jody about how this very recent holiday reflects the way history is getting written before our

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It's June 17th. This day in 1975, Steven Spielberg's JAWS is in theaters -- it is the first proper summer blockbuster, and also has a massive political and cultural effect. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the movie ruined the reputation of sharks, and also served as a parable for late-1970s American malaise. Sign up

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It's June 12. This day in 1967, President Johnson nominates Thurgood Marshall as the first Black Supreme Court justice.  Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss Marshall's stories legal career up until this point -- but why Johnson was still taking a major risk in putting him forward. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands

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