When World War I began in Europe, American journalists rushed to cover the war. The decades prior to 1914 had been filled with colonial conflicts, revolutions and wars around the world. Many reporters assumed they would cover the new war in Europe as they had covered other wars. However, the scale, brutality, and duration of World War I forced journalists to rewrite the traditional rules of reporting and to find creative ways to access information about the war to try to keep the American public informed. To discuss the stories of these reporters and their coverage of World War I, the World War I Podcast hosted Chris Dubbs, a military historian and journalist, and the author of American Journalists in the Great War. 

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During World War I, General John J. Pershing considered Douglas MacArthur his finest battlefield commander and George Marshall his finest staff officer. Pershing preferred Marshall to MacArthur but acknowledged that they were very different men. To Pershing, Marshall had a military mind, while MacArthur had a warrior mind. The military mind exists, according to Samuel P. Huntington, “in a world of grays.” In contrast, MacArthur’s warrior mind was “one of blacks and whites and loud and clashing colors.”

While both men would go on to have a very long, very consequential working relationship, some MacArthur biographers suggest that their World War I service sowed a seed of antagonism that had major consequences in the future. Is this true?? What happened between them in World War I?? To answer this question, Jim Zobel and Amanda Williams sat down to discuss the Marshall/MacArthur relationship during this period.

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World War I had a profound effect on the French wine industry.  The Champagne wine region was a battleground for most of the war. In addition, the loss of markets, labor shortages and production problems presented huge challenges for the industry. Despite these challenges, wine was a growing part of French national identity.  It also played a daily role in the war. French soldiers received a daily wine ration because French military leaders and doctors considered wine a fortifying tool that increased combat effectiveness. To discuss France, wine, and World War I, the World War I Podcast recently hosted Walter Wolf III—a lawyer, military historian, and wine expert.

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Today when most people think of the USMC in WWI, they think about Belleau Wood. They don’t tend to think of the role Marines played in taking Blanc Mont in the Champagne sector in 1918. The French understood the importance of Blanc Mont, but World War I historians tend to devote just a sentence or a footnote to the battle. To discuss the story of the Marines at Blanc Mont, we sat down with Lieutenant Colonel Peter F. Owen, USMC (ret.) and Lieutenant Colonel John Swift, USMC (ret.), co-authors of the book A Hideous Price: The 4th Brigade at Blanc Mont 2-10 October 1918. 

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When the US entered World War I, Douglas MacArthur was a major attached to the US Army General Staff. About 14 months later, he was a brigadier general. Prior to the war’s conclusion in November 1918, he was on the verge of a promotion to major general. Wartime promotions in the National Army raised many career officers like MacArthur, George Marshall, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and George Patton several grades. After the war though, these officers typically reverted back to their pre-war rank in the Regular Army. MacArthur was an exception. He would spend the next several decades as a general officer. 

Jim Zobel and Amanda Williams of the MacArthur Memorial recently sat down together to discuss circumstances behind these World War I promotions - and whether or not they were warranted or influenced by family connections.

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Due to farming, construction, or archeological projects, the remains of soldiers killed in World War I continue to be unearthed along what was once the Western Front.  Although the conflict ended more than 100 years ago, historians, archaeologists, and scientists are able to identify dozens of these soldiers each year.  To discuss this work, we recently sat down with military historian and archaeologist Andrew Robertshaw.

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The Chronicles of Narnia has sold more than 100 million copies in 47 languages. The Lord of the Rings has sold 150 million copies in 38 languages. The authors, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, were combat veterans of World War I. Great historians and statesmen have written that World War I left mankind in an abyss of desolation - and the idea of a lost generation emerging out of this war is a popular one. That might only be part of the story though. For some, like Lewis and Tolkien, the war deepened faith and helped them develop an understanding of a difficult world. To discuss their wartime service and the influence of the war on their writing, we sat down with Dr. Joseph Loconte, author of A Hobbit, A Wardrobe, and a Great War.

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World War I was a very interesting and complicated moment in the U.S./Philippine relationship. Many Filipino's supported the war effort - hopeful that a war to make the world "safe for democracy" would also lead to Philippine independence. Filipinos served in the U.S. military, others bought war bonds, and a Philippine National Guard was created in the hope that it could add  25,000 men to General Pershing's American Expeditionary Force. To explore this relatively overlooked part of World War I history,  Dr. Christopher Capozzola, author of Bound by War: How the United States and the Philippines Built America's First Pacific Century, joined us for a discussion of the Philippines and World War I.

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When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, baseball had been America's national past time for about 60 years. The start of the war also coincided with the start of the 1917 MLB season. Many professional ballplayers would serve in the military, forcing MLB's response to the war to evolve over the 1917-1919 seasons. At the same time, American troops in Europe created hundreds of baseball diamonds and played thousands of baseball games during the war and the occupation that followed. To discuss baseball and World War I, we recently sat down with Al Barnes, co-author of the book Play Ball!: Doughboys and Baseball during the Great War.

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With limited space to tell so many stories, museums always have some very interesting items in storage. The Smithsonian is no different! In this episode, Dr. Frank Blazich, Curator of Military History in the Smithsonian's Division of Political and Military History, shares the story of five very interesting artifacts, currently in storage at the National Museum of American History.

Artifacts include:

• Medal of Honor of George McMurtry, a member of The Lost Battalion
• Mark I Depth Charge
• John J. Pershing's World War I Victory Medal
• Kaiser Wilhelm II's Valet Kit
• Artbook of Charles Mauro

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