Barack Obama Partners with Malcolm Gladwell for New Podcast About an 'Often Overlooked' Subject
Barack Obama Partners with Malcolm Gladwell for New Podcast About an 'Often Overlooked' Subject
Meredith KileThu, June 4, 2026 at 1:00 PM UTC
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Malcolm Gladwell and former President Barack ObamaCredit: 2025/2026 Higher Ground Productions/Eli Turner/Courtesy of A+E Global Media -
Former President Barack Obama has teamed up with Malcolm Gladwell and The History Channel for a new podcast
Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise is an eight-part series that focuses on the "pivotal and turbulent chapter" following the Civil War
Obama and Gladwell's conversations will draw on archives, letters, diaries, court records, eyewitness testimonies and guest commentary from scholars and storytellers
Former President Barack Obama and award-winning journalist Malcolm Gladwell are teaming up for a new podcast project with The History Channel.
Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise is an eight-part series that debuts exclusively on Audible on Thursday, June 4, before it's made available everywhere on June 18.
In the series, Obama and Gladwell will explore the Reconstruction Era in the United States, the 12-year period following the conclusion of the Civil War. The duo will draw on archives, letters, diaries, court records, eyewitness testimonies and guest commentary from scholars and storytellers to learn about the tumultuous years between 1865 and 1877, as Americans struggled to put their country back together and make sense of the new normal.
"The Reconstruction Era was a brief but pivotal and turbulent chapter in our nation's history — one that is often overlooked, even though its consequences are still felt today," Obama said in a press release announcing the series. "In confronting this period honestly, I hope audiences can rediscover an essential part of our past and remember that even in moments of deep conflict and contradiction, persistence and perseverance remain powerful sources of hope."
Former President Barack Obama sits for a taping of 'Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise'Credit: 2025/2026 Higher Ground Productions/Eli Turner/Courtesy of A+E Global Media
Produced in collaboration with Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground, Malcom Gladwell's Pushkin Industries, The History Channel, and Audible, Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise looks back on a time "when the United States had the opportunity to reimagine society — from the foundations of its economy to the very nature of citizenship itself."
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"Reconstruction begins where, for most Americans, the story of the Civil War ends — the North is victorious, and slavery is abolished. But what happened next was one of the most important decades in American history, a moment when our country grappled with its original sin and imagined, and briefly enacted, a more perfect union," the release reads. "The series unpacks a time when a determined band of reformers attempted to radically reimagine American society, from the Constitution to the roots of its economy to the very nature of citizenship itself."
Former President Barack Obama and Malcolm Gladwell talk on 'Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise'Credit: 2025/2026 Higher Ground Productions/Eli Turner/Courtesy of A+E Global Media
Episodes will begin and end with a candid conversation between Obama and Gladwell, and feature additional commentary from guests including Jelani Cobb, Wyatt Cenac, David Blight, Kai Wright, Kellie Carter Jackson, Ashley C. Ford, Manisha Sinha, Kidada Williams and Eric Foner.
The podcast is part of The History Channel's HISTORY Honors 250 campaign. Leading up to the 250th anniversary of the United States in July 2026, the network is spotlighting themed content, including long-form and short-form programming, digital and social content, custom partnerships, premium events, and more.
Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise is now available exclusively on Audible before its wide release on June 18.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
