NYTIMES (Jennifer Schuessler) - How Revolutionary Was the American Revolution?
Many historians have recently seen it as a tame, even disappointing affair. But in the Trump era, the old question of its radicalism is taking on a fresh charge.
NYTIMES (Zachary Small) - Anthea Hartig, Smithsonian Museum Director, Faces the White House’s Wrath
Historians defended Anthea Hartig, director of the National Museum of American History, after the Trump administration accused her of spreading “radical activist ideology.”
NYTIMES (Jennifer Schuessler) - Historians Reject Trump Administration’s Criticism of Smithsonian Museum
The nation’s largest group of scholars of U.S. history denounced a White House report attacking the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
THENATIONALPULSE (Pulse Wires) - Smithsonian Leadership is ‘Extremist’ Says White House.
The Trump administration's report accuses the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History of prioritizing activism over historical scholarship, sparking debate over the role of ideology in public institutions.
The Trump administration’s report accuses the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History of prioritizing activism over historical scholarship, sparking debate over the role of ideology in public institutions. PULSE POINTS WHAT HAPPENED: A White House report released by the Trump administration accuses the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution of promoting “extreme political activism .” The report states that the museum has shifted its focus from historical scholarship to social justice advocacy, emphasizing themes of alleged racism, oppression, and inequality over traditional narratives of American history. WHEN & WHERE: The 162-page report was released on July 4, 2025, as part of the Trump…Open
HUFFPOST - Historians Warn U.S. Democracy’s Survival Depends On This Key Civic Skill. And It’s Disappearing.
Here’s how “the whole collective self-government thing goes down the tube,” according to two historians who have studied the fall of other democracies.
NPR (Neda Ulaby) - Conservative Christians love this painting of George Washington. The event it depicts may not have happened
A painting of George Washington is being used by the Trump administration to argue the founders were devout Christians, but historians have doubts about whether the moment depicted actually happened.
NPR (Carrie Johnson) - Who owns presidential records? Trump's Justice Department says it's him
The Trump administration asserts a nearly 50-year-old law requiring the preservation of presidential records is unconstitutional. Historians warn important papers could be destroyed.