Best Rodney Max Podcasts (2026)

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A Review of Our Favorite Plumblines of 2025 42:56

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23h ago42:56

42:56

Send us a text Join Shelley's Plumbline for this powerful year-end recap, reflecting on the most impactful conversations of 2025, a year marked by the addition of co-host Dr. Ricky Jones. Jones’s arrival brought a new voice of depth and truth that resonated profoundly with listeners. The year’s second most downloaded episode, "Finding My Father," f…

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The History of Santa Claus & Christmas Culture w/ James Cooper 33:05

3d ago33:05

33:05

It's Christmas time and this week we're resharing the original RTN Christmas Classic! Christmas expert James Cooper joins Bob and Ben to explain how Santa Claus, Christmas trees, and other Christmas traditions made their way into popular culture. He also shares stories of lesser known traditions, such as setting fire to the giant Swedish straw goat…

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Racism Today (Rebroadcast) 34:36

9d ago34:36

34:36

Send us a text Hello, Plumbliners! Shelley, Mark and Ricky are going to take a break going into the holiday season. So today, we (re)present the most downloaded Plumbline episode of 2025, titled "Racism Today." In this episode, Shelley, Mark and Ricky Jones launch into a powerful discussion on the enduring struggle against racism, arguing that whil…

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#354 In Pursuit w/Anita McBride & Colleen Shogan 46:08

10d ago46:08

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Anita McBride is one of the foremost experts on the legacy of American first ladies. Colleen Shogan served as the 11thArchivist of the United States. Together, they're bringing forward a new project called In Pursuit, which offers up a series of essays on Presidents and First Ladies by some of today's most accomplished historians and political lead…

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Whatever Happened to Rosa Parks? 33:00

22d ago33:00

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Send us a text Today, Shelley and Ricky focus their discussion on the ongoing disregard for both Claudette Colvin and Rosa Parks after the bus boycott, noting Parks' financial struggles and the general minimization of women's contributions by male movement leaders. Shelley and Ricky share a broader contemporary critique, lamenting the societal decl…

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It's a Wonderful Life: The Story Behind America's Favorite Christmas Film w/ Eric Smoodin 1:07:56

17d ago1:07:56

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Dr. Eric Smoodin, film historian at the University of California- Davis and author of Regarding Frank Capra: Audience, Celebrity and American Film Studies, 1930-1960, joins Bob and Ben for the history of the people, the industry, and law that made Frank Capra's 1946 film It's A Wonderful Life into one of America's quintessential Christmas films. Th…

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Some Truths About Claudette Colvin and Rosa Parks 38:21

28d ago38:21

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Send us a text This episode of Shelley's Plumline, explores the 70th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott with special guest Gloria Laster, the older sister of Claudette Colvin. The discussion centers on the overlooked role of Colvin, the 15-year-old arrested nine months before Rosa Parks for the same act of defiance. Laster recounts how Colvi…

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America's First War on Christmas w/ Bruce Carlson 52:32

24d ago52:32

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On December 25, 1776, George Washington and his men celebrated their first post-Declaration of Independence Christmas by crossing a freezing river to mount a surprise attack against their enemies. The plan worked, but almost 250 years later the story of Washington crossing the Delaware might surprise you too. In this episode, RTN favorite Bruce Car…

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Shelley's Role in The Children's March 35:51

1M ago35:51

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Send us a text In this episode, Shelley and Ricky discuss the key role that Shelley played in the Children's March. The scene is Birmingham, Alabama, April and May of 1963. Martin Luther King Jr.’s advisors had deliberately chosen the city to confront the notoriously violent Police Commissioner, Bull Connor. Shelley recounts advising King to leave …

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How John Adams Defined the Presidency w/ Lindsay Chervinsky 54:08

1M ago54:08

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John Adams' single term as President has long been cast as a low point in his political career, but Lindsay Chervinsky sees it differently. "George Washington created the Presidency," she writes in her new book Making the Presidency, "but John Adams defined it." In this episode, Lindsay joins us to share why she sees Adams as a crucial figure in tr…

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Shelley's Encounters with the KKK 39:15

1M ago39:15

39:15

Send us a text In this episode, Shelley recounts his conflicts with the Ku Klux Klan in Birmingham in the 1950s, intensified by his refusal to adhere to segregated customs in local stores. Shelley reveals that many Klan members were police officers and local business owners. His activism escalated on his WEDR radio show, where he publicly discussed…

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Americana w/ Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell 51:55

1M ago51:55

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What is Americana music? Is it a genre? A community? A refuge? Twenty four years after the founding of the Americana Music Association and thirteen years since the first Grammy was awarded for Best Americana Album, defining "Americana" remains tricky. In our experience, the most common answer has been "you know it when you hear it." However you def…

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Shelley's Early Days in Radio 34:16

2M ago34:16

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#353 The American Revolution w/ Sarah Botstein & David Schmidt 55:46

2M ago55:46

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A decade after Ken Burns decided it was time to take on the American Revolution, the film is finished and premieres on your local PBS station on Sunday, November 16! In this episode, we talk with Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt, who directed the six-part series alongside Burns, to find out more about the stories and process that they used to const…

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Shelley "The Playboy" Enters the Radio Hall of Fame 35:28

2M ago35:28

35:28

Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#352 Wakara's America w/ Max Perry Mueller 57:58

2M ago57:58

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Wakara was a Ute leader whose power stretched across western North America long before the US claimed the land on which he lived. In this episode, Max Perry Mueller joins us to discuss his new book, Wakara's America: The Life & Legacy of a Native Founder of the American West, and how a story of the west that excludes Native peoples leaves us with a…

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If We Knew Better, Part 2 32:28

2M ago32:28

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#351 A History of the American Bookstore w/ Evan Friss 1:02:44

2M ago1:02:44

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America's bookstores have always been about more than just books, but the role they play in American society has changed over the years. In this episode, Evan Friss joins us for a conversation about his New York Times Bestseller, The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore (Viking, 2023), and the unique place that bookstores – and those who o…

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If We Knew Better, Part 1 39:35

2M ago39:35

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#350 The Pursuit of Liberty w/ Jeffrey Rosen 55:23

2M ago55:23

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National Constitution Center President & CEO Jeffrey Rosen returns to the show to discuss his new book The Pursuit of Liberty: How Hamilton vs. Jefferson Ignited the Lasting Battle Over Power in America, and the ways that the contrasting visions of the founders live on in our political debates today. Make sure to check out the National Constitution…

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Miseducation Continues 36:48

3M ago36:48

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#349 Teaching History Roundtable 53:35

3M ago53:35

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Teaching history to a middle schooler is a very different task than teaching a university student, but those doing the teaching have a lot in common (and could probably learn a lot from each other). In this episode, recorded as part of a live event sponsored by the Tennessee Council for History Education, Ben is joined by his MTSU colleague (and fr…

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Racism Today 34:36

3M ago34:36

34:36

Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#348 Chasing an Al Qaeda Killer w/ Jake Tapper 58:21

3M ago58:21

58:21

The War on Terror that followed the 9/11 attacks took place on battlefields across the globe, but it also took place in our legal system. In this episode, CNN's Jake Tapper joins us to discuss his new book, Race Against Terror: Chasing an Al Qaeda Killer at the Dawn of the Forever War, and how dedicated public servants saved countless lives by brin…

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Hosea Revisited 37:01

3M ago37:01

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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An Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the Civil War w/ Robert K.D. Colby 1:03:48

3M ago1:03:48

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The American Civil War and the end of slavery in the US may seem like one and the same from our modern perspective, but for those living through the conflict, the abolition of human bondage was anything but certain. Even into the last days of the war, slave traders in Confederate-held cities continued to auction off human beings, realizing handsome…

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Shelley's 91st Birthday 36:20

3M ago36:20

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#347 A Graphic History of the Civil War w/ Andrew Fialka & Anderson Carmen 53:43

3M ago53:43

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Guerilla violence in the American Civil War was once considered a fringe topic of study, but the scale of the violence and its impact on society had a tremendous impact on the US during and after the conflict. In this episode, we speak with historian Andrew Fialka and illustrator Anderson Carmen about their new book, Hope Never to See It: A Graphic…

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What Has Happened to Black Media? 34:03

4M ago34:03

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#346 A Forgotten History of Chinese Life in the United States w/ Beth Lew-Williams 56:49

4M ago56:49

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Chinese immigrants helped establish America's foothold on the western coast, yet few of us know what life looked like for those Chinese people who came to live in the US. In this episode, Beth Lew-Williams joins us to discuss her new book, John Doe Chinaman: A Forgotten History of Chinese Life Under American Racial Law, which blends extensive archi…

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Is Our Progress Going Backwards? 34:55

4M ago34:55

34:55

Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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#345 How the Globalization Gamble Went Wrong w/ David J. Lynch 57:45

4M ago57:45

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Washington Post Global Economics Correspondent David J. Lynch joins Ben & Bob for a discussion about his new book The World's Worst Bet: How the Globalization Gamble Went Wrong (and What Would Make it Right) (Public Affairs, 2025). David has a unique perspective on globalization; first as a journalist who has spent the last four decades covering th…

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Education Lifts All Ships 34:00

4M ago34:00

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Send us a text Follow us and continue the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.By Shelley Stewart

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How the American Dream Became Temporary w/ Louis Hyman 46:35

4M ago46:35

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It's Labor Day, so we're sharing one of our favorite conversations on the history of labor in the US- our 2018 conversation with Louis Hyman on his book Temp: The Real Story of What Happened to Your Salary, Benefits & Job Security. We hope you have a great holiday! This episode originally aired as episode 103 on August 18, 2018. This rebroadcast wa…