Guests: John J. Miller & Jonathan Butcher

Host Scot Bertram talks with John J. Miller, director of the Dow Journalism Program at Hillsdale College, about his recent essay on why journalism suffers when journalists lack curiosity. And Jonathan Butcher, acting director at the Center for Education Policy and Will Skillman Senior Research Fellow in Education Policy at the Heritage Foundation, discusses how Americans are far more united than the media portrays and dives into his new book The Polarization Myth: America's Surprising Consensus on Race, Schools, and Sex.

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Host Scot Bertram sits down with Hyperion Knight, concert pianist and distinguished fellow at Hillsdale College, and discusses the newest Hillsdale College online course: "The History of Classical Music: Chopin through Gershwin." Also, we count down the most popular episodes of 2025.

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Guests: Kenneth Calvert & Timothy McDonnell

Host Scot Bertram talks with Kenneth Calvert, professor of ancient history at Hillsdale College, about the biblical significance of Christmas. And Timothy McDonnell, associate professor of music at Hillsdale College, gives a survey of the history of the Christmas carol "Good Christian Men Rejoice."

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Guests: Kenneth Calvert & Chloe Carmichael

Host Scot Bertram talks with Kenneth Calvert, professor of ancient history at Hillsdale College, about the historical origins of Christmas. And Chloe Carmichael, clinical psychologist and USA Today best-selling author, discusses how free speech makes people healthier and happier and her new book Can I Say That? Why Free Speech Matters and How to Use It Fearlessly.

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Guests: Mathew Spalding

Host Scot Bertram talks with Matthew Spalding, vice president of Washington Operations and dean of the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale College in Washington, D.C, about his new book, The Making of the American Mind: The Story of our Declaration of Independence, and the intellectual tradition that inspired the writing of the Declaration of Independence.

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Guests: Scott Jennings & Ava Downs

Host Scot Bertram talks with Scott Jennings, senior political commentator at CNN, about his new book, A Revolution of Common Sense: How Donald Trump Stormed Washington and Fought for Western Civilization, and the character of President Trump's first year back in office. And Ava Downs, a junior at Hillsdale College and a 2025 junior Olympic champion in international trap shooting, discusses how she trains to compete at a global level and how her Hillsdale experience has helped her.

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Guests: Mark Moyar, Jason M. Gehrke, & Tom Conner 

Host Scot Bertram talks with Mark Moyar, the William P. Harris Chair in Military History at Hillsdale College, about his recent essay on the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. Jason Gehrke, assistant professor of history at Hillsdale College, discusses his recent essay on the nature of America First foreign policy. And Tom Conner, professor emeritus of history at Hillsdale College, gives a survey of the history of the Luxembourg American Cemetery.

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Guests: Susan Crabtree & Jeremiah Regan

Host Scot Bertram talks with Susan Crabtree, senior White House and national political correspondent for RealClearPolitics, about her recent book Fool’s Gold: The Radicals, Con Artists, and Traitors Who Killed the California Dream and Now Threaten Us All. And Jeremiah Regan, Executive Director of Online Learning at Hillsdale College, previews the new online course documentary, Colonial America.

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Guests: John J. Miller & Benedict Whalen

On this Halloween weekend, John J. Miller, director of the Herbert H. Dow II Program in American Journalism at Hillsdale College, joins the show to talk about his course on great ghost and horror stories. And Benedict Whalen, associate professor of English at Hillsdale College, concludes a series of interviews celebrating the 100th anniversary of The Great Gatsby by discussing the novel’s long-lasting legacy.

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Guests: Dr. Larry P. Arnn, Ryan P. Williams, & Nathan Herring

We hear excerpts from a speech delivered by Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn titled “Defending the American Way of Life.” Host Scot Bertram talks with Ryan P. Williams, president of The Claremont Institute and publisher of the Claremont Review of Books, about American scholar Angelo Codevilla and Williams’ new edited collection of tributes to Codevilla, Fighting Enemies Foreign and Domestic: The Legacy of Angelo Codevilla. And Nathan Herring, assistant professor of physics at Hillsdale College, discusses the life and accomplishments of physicist Sir Isaac Newton.

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