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New Books in African American Studies

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Civil Rights Movement
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This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: newbooksnetwork.com Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to ge... more

PublishesDailyEpisodes1953Founded15 years ago
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Artwork for New Books in African American Studies

Latest Episodes

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight inter... more

Dan Rood’s In the Shadow of the Great House (W.W.

Norton & Co., 2026) is one of the first contemporary books to focus

on the primary engine of slavery, race, and capitalism in this country:

the plantation. The plantation was invented on the small ... more

The violence that spread across Harlem on the night of March 19, 1935 was the first

large-scale racial disorder in the United States in more than a decade and the first

occurrence in the nation’s leading Black neighborhood. However, as many observer... more

Owning My Masters (Mastered) is a digital archive of original rap music and spoken word poetry containing two volumes of music, an annotated timeline, videos, and a digital book. In this project, A.D. Carson exposes the artificial boundaries imposed ... more

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Recent Guests

Daniel Rood
Associate Professor, University of Georgia
University of Georgia
Episode: Daniel Rood, "In the Shadow of the Great House: A History of the Plantation in America" (Norton, 2026)
Elizabeth J. West
Professor of English and the Amos Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University
Georgia State University
Episode: Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies
Muhammad Fraser-Rahim
Associate Professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel
The Citadel
Episode: Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies
Dr. Stephen Robertson
Author of Harlem in Disorder: A Spatial History of How Racial Violence Changed in 1935
Stanford University Press / Stanford University (author)
Episode: Stephen Robertson, "Harlem in Disorder: A Spatial History of How Racial Violence Changed in 1935" (Stanford UP, 2024)
John Garrison Marks
Historian; author of Thy Will Be Done, George Washington's Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory
University of North Carolina Press; Public Historian
Episode: Thy Will Be Done: George Washington's Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory
AD. Carson
Author of Owning My Masters Remastered
University of Virginia
Episode: A.D. Carson, "Owning My Masters (Mastered): The Rhetorics of Rhymes & Revolutions" (U Michigan Press, 2026)
Sharron Wilkins Conrad
Author of The Trinity, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Civil Rights in African American Memory
Tarant County College (historian); Southern Methodist University Center for Presidential History (senior fellow)
Episode: Sharron Wilkins Conrad, "The Trinity: John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Civil Rights in African American Memory" (UNC Press, 2026)
David Famiano
Journals Director, UC Press Journals program
University of California Press
Episode: Introducing Periodically: A UC Press Journals Podcast with Journals Director David Famiano
Erik K. Washington
Project historian and author of Where Harlem Rests at the Woodlawn Cemetery
National Trust for Historic Preservation African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund
Episode: Where Harlem Rests at the Woodlawn Cemetery

Host

Miranda Melcher
Host of The New Books Network; guides and introduces conversations

Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars from 213 ratings
  • Interesting

    Really interesting episodes and I’m glad to have somewhere to go when I’m either looking for a new book or something new to me.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    BreOutside
    United States21 days ago
  • They always feature my fav scholars and thinkers

    Anytime I’m looking to learn more about a new author that I️ come across, chances are, they’ve already been interviewed by you all!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    @bodegaautumn
    United Statesa year ago
  • Varied and interesting

    So many excellent authors discuss their books on this podcast that I wouldn’t have found out about otherwise. Thank you for this great channel of information!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Sol na Laje
    United Kingdom3 years ago
  • Host needs moderation work

    First, honor and excitement for this podcast — Listened to the “Silencing the Past” Trouillot episode which brought together some stellar scholars to a round table to discuss the impact of the text in our recent years, in and following 2020. Interspersed between scholars’ remarks about the text or social events, McNeil might chime in, “that’s really interesting” or “wow, that’s incredible” or but added so very little in the way of building, or drawing connections between ideas, I found myself sk... more

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    technique over topics
    United States3 years ago
  • Really

    Are there African Americans who write books on African American history? Really!?!? Do better or end this.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    Clone B.
    United States3 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

A few listeners feel hosts could be more concise and less conversational to improve focus and pacing.
Scholarly and author-focused discussions are consistently engaging and informative.
Positive reception overall for access to new scholarship and diverse topics in African American studies.
The show delivers deep dives into new scholarly works with strong archival and methodological framing.

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Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

A.D. Carson, "Owning My Masters (Mastered): The Rhetorics of Rhymes & Revolutions" (U Michigan Press, 2026)
Q: What should listeners take away from this work?
Listeners should understand that consuming media is an entry point into complex realities, and that engaging with the project can open access to experiences and histories that may be invisible in conventional academia.
A.D. Carson, "Owning My Masters (Mastered): The Rhetorics of Rhymes & Revolutions" (U Michigan Press, 2026)
Q: How does archiving shape his creative and scholarly practice?
He explains that archiving is a daily habit for him as a hip hop artist, ensuring ongoing documentation and material for future songs, and that the archive acts as a methodological backbone linking history, theory, and lived experience.
A.D. Carson, "Owning My Masters (Mastered): The Rhetorics of Rhymes & Revolutions" (U Michigan Press, 2026)
Q: What was the journey like from dissertation to remastered publication?
Carson describes a ten-year maturation process, starting with early attempts to publish rap as academic work, facing gatekeeping, and ultimately finding support and space with the University of Michigan Press to publish a peer‑reviewed, multimodal edition.
Thy Will Be Done: George Washington's Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory
Q: How does your book frame Washington—not as a straight biography but as a lens on how Americans have grappled with his legacy?
The book argues that Washington's involvement with slavery is central, but it's not the whole story; it's about how Americans have remembered, forgotten, and argued about his legacy, using Washington as a mirror for national debates over race and memory.
Thy Will Be Done: George Washington's Legacy of Slavery and the Fight for American Memory
Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you found your path to this book?
I'm a historian focusing on public history and museums; I pursued a career that merges research with making history accessible to a broader public, which led me from traditional academia into roles that involve research, writing, and public engagement.

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Frequently Asked Questions About New Books in African American Studies

What is New Books in African American Studies about and what kind of topics does it cover?

The channel explores recent scholarly titles in African American studies, history, and culture through in-depth author interviews with an emphasis on how books illuminate race, memory, and democracy. Episodes span topics from Jefferson's conflicted legacy and race to global Black horror cinema, food history in New Orleans, and policing and civil rights, often blending archival methods with critical theory. A notable strength is the breadth of disciplines and geographies, featuring editors, historians, and literary scholars who connect historical events to contemporary issues, making complex scholarship accessible to an educated audience. The show often highlights methodological approaches, cross-cultural comparisons, and the role of public ... more

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How many episodes of New Books in African American Studies are there?

New Books in African American Studies launched 15 years ago and published 1953 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on New Books in African American Studies?

Recent guests on New Books in African American Studies include:

1. Daniel Rood
2. Elizabeth J. West
3. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim
4. Dr. Stephen Robertson
5. John Garrison Marks
6. AD. Carson
7. Sharron Wilkins Conrad
8. David Famiano

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