James McWilliams

James McWilliams is an historian at Texas State University. He's currently at work on a book on the art and literature of the American South. He lives in Austin, Texas.

Uncommon Podcasts

Three outlets for the radically curious

by James McWilliams | Thursday, September 05, 2019

The Paradox of Poetry

A podcast from a leading poetry magazine helps demystify contemporary poems

by James McWilliams | Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Pessimists and Progress

Lessons from skeptics throughout history

by James McWilliams | Monday, June 10, 2019

Words Under Siege

How Big Tech’s intrusion into public and private life undermines the promise of democracy

by James McWilliams | Monday, May 06, 2019

Storytelling in the Podcast Age

Critics allege that the Fourth Estate is biased and out of touch. Here’s how one band of podcasters breaks down barriers between journalists and their audience.

by James McWilliams | Tuesday, April 02, 2019

Not Waving

Frank Delaney and the nearing tide

by James McWilliams | Thursday, February 28, 2019

Of Poets and a President

Was Walt Whitman right when he said that America’s “common referee” is not its presidents but its poets?

by James McWilliams | Tuesday, January 29, 2019

A Symphony of Sounds

The surprising storytelling powers of background noise

by James McWilliams | Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Podcasts To Get You Thinking

Our new Daily Scholar columnist reviews the best educational offerings

by James McWilliams | Monday, November 26, 2018

Here’s the Beef with Chicken from China

The Trump USDA favored a powerful lobby over American food safety

by James McWilliams | Monday, December 04, 2017

Loving Animals to Death

How can we raise them humanely and then butcher them?

by James McWilliams | Tuesday, March 11, 2014

The Examined Lie

A meditation on memory

by James McWilliams | Monday, June 08, 2015

Saving the Self in the Age of the Selfie

We must learn to humanize digital life as actively as we’ve digitized human life—here’s how

by James McWilliams | Monday, February 29, 2016