Category: American History

Thomas Edison: Measuring the days of an extraordinary life

Guest post by Louis Carlat "There is no such thing in anyone's life as an unimportant day," said American essayist Alexander Woollcott. Anything might happen. But of course, some days turn out to be more important than others. With the publication of its eighth volume, the Thomas Edison papers project has gone through the record…

Thomas Edison: Measuring the days of an extraordinary life

Guest post by Louis Carlat "There is no such thing in anyone's life as an unimportant day," said American essayist Alexander Woollcott. Anything might happen. But of course, some days turn out to be more important than others. With the publication of its eighth volume, the Thomas Edison papers project has gone through the record…

Spring books preview: Maryland Historical Society

We’re excited about the books we’ll be publishing this spring—and we're pleased to start off the new year with a series of posts that highlight our forthcoming titles. Be sure to check out the online edition of JHUP’s entire Spring 2016 catalog, and remember that promo code “HDPD” gets you a 30% discount on all…

Is it “propaganda” if it advocates for something you want?

Guest post by Jonathan Auerbach Because I recently coedited a collection of essays on the subject of propaganda, I sometimes get approached by journalists asking me to weigh in on current events. How effective is Putin’s “propaganda” against the West in promoting the separatist movement in Ukraine? How best to counteract gruesome ISIS videos, aimed…

Is it “propaganda” if it advocates for something you want?

Guest post by Jonathan Auerbach Because I recently coedited a collection of essays on the subject of propaganda, I sometimes get approached by journalists asking me to weigh in on current events. How effective is Putin’s “propaganda” against the West in promoting the separatist movement in Ukraine? How best to counteract gruesome ISIS videos, aimed…