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Joseph M. Thompson is assistant professor of history at Mississippi State University, and the author of Cold War Country: How Nashville's Music Row and the Pentagon Created the Sound of American Patriotism (UNC Press, 2024). Thompson’s history tracks the deep connections between country music and the U.S. military, uncovering a concerted effort by government officials and cultural creators to cement country culture and national pride (and of course, anti-communism). Our conversation moves from Slim Pickens to Toby Keith, as we explore how the cultural politics of country continue to shape the 21st century. Subscribe to the Nostalgia Trap Patreon to check out my News Trap updates and all of our bonus content: patreon.com/nostalgiatrap

Andrew C. McKevitt is John D. Winters Endowed Professor of History at Louisiana Tech University. His latest book, Gun Country: Gun Capitalism, Culture, and Control in Cold War America, explores how guns came to occupy a curious place between “constitutional right” and “consumer good,” as the Cold War provided a cultural, political, and material framework by which guns could become the hottest item of the late 20th century. In this conversation, McKevitt shares some of the highlights of his research and provides historical context for the often simplistic “gun control” debate.  Subscribe to the Nostalgia Trap Patreon to check out my News Trap updates and all of our bonus content: patreon.com/nostalgiatrap  

R.E.M. is one of the most influential rock bands in American music history, with a legendary arc that took them from college radio punks in the early 80s to critical darlings and arena rockers with multiple smash albums throughout the 90s. But what happened after that? This week Justin shares a thesis about the final phase of R.E.M.’s career, during which the band signed an $80 million contract with Warner Brothers – and it all went downhill from there. As we take a close look at Michael Stipe’s creative output and public persona, we recoil at how even our favorite artists can succumb to the poisonous influence of money and fame. Check out our Patreon for daily News Trap episodes, bonus interviews, documentary shorts, and much more: https://www.patreon.com/nostalgiatrap

Anti-immigration politics are winning the moment, the market for testosterone replacement therapy is booming, child labor is on the horizon, and United Health EATS PEOPLE. And so ends this week's FREE PREVIEW for News Trap. Subscribe to continue the News Trap journey and keep up with all new episodes next week and beyond:  https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded

A stunning new piece in The Atlantic offers details on the fall of America as seen from Phoenix, Arizona. Folks, 2024 is gonna be a hell of year. This is FREE PREVIEW WEEK for News Trap, subscribe to hear 'em all: https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded

Today we take a detailed look at this incredible Wall Street Journal piece featuring text messages from Yahya Sinwar, Hamas leader and architect of 10/7. What's Sinwar's strategy? And how does it fit into an American antiwar movement's calculations? This week's episodes of News Trap are free for everyone but next week we're back to subscribers-only...so subscribe!  Here's the link: https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded

Nobody likes new cars, everyone loves old cars, Americans are on a spending spree while complaining about the economy, the anti-AI rebellion is growing. This is a free episode of News Trap, subscribe to our Patreon for access to daily episodes: https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded

This week Justin and I talk about the 2008 Coen brothers film Burn After Reading, another “acid take” on American politics and culture with uncanny implications for our 2024 carnival timeline.   Check out our daily News Trap updates to catch up on the "map of the future," in real time: https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded  

David Rensin is the author of more than a dozen books, five of them New York Times bestsellers. I was lucky enough to meet David through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and he joins me here for a conversation about his long, strange trip as a journalist and author, from writing for Rolling Stone and Playboy in the 1960s and 70s to co-authoring massively popular books with Tim Allen and Jeff Foxworthy (!) in the 1990s. Rensin’s 2013 book  All for a Few Perfect Waves: The Audacious Life and Legend of Rebel Surfer Miki Dora is one of the most compelling visions of mid-century California I’ve encountered, and we talk here about Rensin’s decades-long odyssey to capture Dora’s significance as a surfer and cultural figure.   Check out my daily NEWS TRAP updates: https://www.patreon.com/collection/520366?view=expanded