Throughline
NPR
Throughline is a time machine. Each episode, we travel beyond the headlines to answer the question, "How did we get here?" We use sound and stories to bring history to life and put you into the middle of it. From ancient civilizations to forgotten figures, we take you directly to the moments that shaped our world. Throughline is hosted by Peabody Award-winning journalist Rund Abdelfatah. Support public media by joining NPR+ at plus.npr.org. You’ll get perks for over 25 NPR podcasts, including sponsor-free listening for Throughline.
Episodes
Mentioned books
49 snips
Nov 5, 2026 • 53min
Health Insurance in America
Political scientist Jim Morone of Brown University and sociologist Paul Starr of Princeton University explore how America’s health insurance system took shape. They trace the rise of employer-sponsored coverage, the defeat of national insurance, the creation of Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of a fragmented system. A revealing history of policy, politics, and missed chances.
6 snips
Nov 3, 2026 • 24min
Remembering Noah Adams
Remember Noah Adams through three deeply human stories: the scars of war etched into Belgrade, Nebraska farmers battling drought and the ghosts of the Dust Bowl, and a bold attempt to engineer allergy-free cats. Together, they explore conflict, resilience, grief, and the uneasy boundaries of biotechnology.
25 snips
Oct 29, 2026 • 52min
Shadows, war, and finding Moomin joy
Stina Ekblad, a Swedish-Finnish actor, voices Tove Jansson. Boel Westin, a leading Jansson scholar, explores the artist’s life and work, while journalist-producer Sarah Wyman traces the story. They follow the Moomins from wartime anxiety and catastrophe to colorful joy, examining Jansson’s family, politics, artistic evolution, and poignant farewell to her beloved characters.
68 snips
Oct 22, 2026 • 37min
The dramatic race to discover Insulin
Alison Li, a historian of biomedical medicine, and Grant Maltman, curator of Banting House, revisit insulin’s dramatic discovery. They trace Frederick Banting’s unlikely start, starvation diets, risky dog experiments, and the race to purify a crude extract. Leonard Thompson’s desperate first injection, J.B. Collip’s breakthrough, the one-dollar patent, and the Nobel Prize fallout bring the high-stakes story to life.
67 snips
Oct 20, 2026 • 20min
Can the polygraph test really spot a lie?
Ken Alder, Northwestern historian and author of *The Lie Detectors*, investigates America’s obsession with the polygraph. The conversation explores how bodily reactions became “evidence,” why police reform helped create the machine, and how courts, workplaces, and labor movements challenged it. It also examines the polygraph’s global reach and its enduring role as security theater.
16 snips
Oct 15, 2026 • 48min
Is the death penalty cruel and unusual?
John Bessler, a University of Baltimore law professor who writes on capital punishment, and Carol Steiker, a Harvard scholar and co-author of Courting Death, explore the Eighth Amendment’s shifting meaning. They trace its Enlightenment roots, examine racial arbitrariness in Furman v. Georgia, and revisit the death penalty’s return. The discussion also considers solitary confinement, forced labor, homelessness bans, and evolving standards of decency.
28 snips
Oct 13, 2026 • 16min
Why does everything get a standing ovation now?
Roger Gilbert, a Cornell professor who studies literature and performance, and journalist-producer Skylar Swenson investigate standing ovation inflation. They trace applause from Shakespeare’s theaters to Broadway finales and Cannes’ marathon clapping. Along the way, they explore how television, celebrity performers, film festivals, and viral moments turned applause into both spectacle and shared social ritual.
42 snips
Oct 8, 2026 • 43min
Four Seasons of Ceasefire in Gaza
Anas Baba, a Palestinian journalist and NPR’s Gaza reporter, recounts four seasons living and reporting through a ceasefire that never brought true safety. He describes winter in flooded tents, hunger, aid restrictions, collapsed healthcare, black markets, and children forced into adulthood. He also documents families recovering loved ones from rubble, Gaza fading from global headlines, and fragile hopes for peace amid fears of renewed war.
70 snips
Oct 1, 2026 • 52min
How To Avoid The End of the World
David Sepkoski, a historian of science and author of Catastrophic Thinking, explores what dinosaur extinction can teach us about existential danger. The story traces the Alvarez father-son team and the iridium clue pointing to an asteroid impact. It then connects that catastrophe to nuclear winter, Carl Sagan’s disarmament campaign, Cold War debates, and humanity’s responsibility to protect Earth.
27 snips
Sep 29, 2026 • 21min
Forty years of what if
Brian Russell, a former Morton Thiokol engineer who worked on the Space Shuttle’s solid rocket boosters, recalls warning NASA about Challenger’s O-rings in freezing weather. He revisits the tense launch decision, management pressure, his suppressed dissent, and the trauma of witnessing the disaster. Russell also explores speaking up about safety, organizational failure, and why space exploration still inspires him.
