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.
James McWilliams
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
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
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