Nostalgia Trap

Apr 03 2025 497 ep. 47 mins 3.3k

Nostalgia Trap Podcast artwork

Deep dive conversations on American history, politics, and pop culture, hosted by history professor and writer David Parsons.

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News Trap 4.3.25 - Tariffs? I Just Met Her!

Apr 03 2025 10 mins

Trump is dismantling the global neoliberal economic order that has served as the left's boogeyman for years, which SHOULD be an opportunity for the left to offer something beyond shrugging ambivalance and lib-dunking. Why isn't that happening? Subscribe to Nostalgia Trap to access all our News Trap episodes and bonus content.

News Trap 3.28.25 - FOMO w/ Justin Rogers-Cooper (PREVIEW)

Mar 28 2025 7 mins

Guitar Center dudes and their insanely rigid opinions lead to a conversation with Justin about the political psychology of FOMO, the rise of the pedophile hunter influencer class, the masculine desperation of emoji-driven war-planning group chat jerkoff sessions, the abject horror of students kidnapped off the streets for their views on Israel and Palestine, and Trump's assault on

Ep 408 - The Final Frontier of Sociopath Presidents? w/ Adam Kotsko

Mar 26 2025 68 mins

Adam Kotsko is a writer and cultural critic whose work focuses on American pop culture, from “cringe” comedies to our national obsession with sociopathic protagonists. His latest book, Late Star Trek: The Final Frontier in the Franchise Era considers how the Star Trek series has evolved (or devolved) in the political economy of streaming TV and the Marvel-ization of feature fil

News Trap 3.21.25 - Irreconcilable Differences (PREVIEW)

Mar 21 2025 3 mins

Fascism comes to my local city council meeting, a proud Israel supporter haunts my gym, Elon Musk's transgender daughter drives him off a cliff, Trump wants to send people to foreign torture camps for Tesla vandalism, and the incompatible worldviews boil hotter than ever. Click here to listen to the whole episode.

News Trap 3.19.25 - Against the Wall

Mar 19 2025 22 mins

Today I fall into paranoid android mode, thinking about what it means to "own the libs" from the left in the new Trump Reich. My message to an increasingly marginalized left flank: be careful what you wish for! Check out John Ganz's terrific Substack, Unpopular Front Subscribe to Nostalgia Trap for access to all our bonus content

News Trap 3.14.25 - Blowback w/ Justin Rogers-Cooper (PREVIEW)

Mar 14 2025 5 mins

Trump and Elon Musk are actively working to destroy the global economic order, but to what end? This week Justin and I consider the wacky cartoon reality that Americans inhabit, and speculate about the different forms "blowback" might take when the punishment gets real. Subscribe to hear the whole episode

Ep 407 - A Complete Unknown w Stephen Petrus

Mar 07 2025 70 mins

Stephen Petrus is director of Public History Programs at LaGuardia and Wagner Archives and co-author of the book Folk City: New York and the American Folk Music Revival (2015). He joins me to discuss the movie A Complete Unknown, which tracks a brief but critical moment in the life of Bob Dylan, when his rise to stardom intersected with the wider social and political project envis

News Trap 2.28.25 - Car's on Fire w/ Justin Rogers-Cooper (PREVIEW)

Feb 28 2025 5 mins

Our good friend Justin Rogers-Cooper joins me to survey the first month of Trump's presidency, as we play out some of the nastier currents now circling in American and global political culture, from Trump's exoneration of his foot soldiers to the left salivating over Luigi Mangione, and much more. Who's really in control? And what can we anticipate as we head into truly uncharted t

News Trap 2.26.25 - The Way of the Gun (PREVIEW)

Feb 26 2025 4 mins

A recent law school event featuring former L.A. County District Attorney Jackie Lacey honestly blew my mind, and made me think a lot about the intersection of crime, law enforcement, reform movements, and political violence. I try to put those ideas together alongside the current culture of J6 pardons and Luigi mania, as we fall further into a chaotic and vengeful national mindset.

News Trap 2.19.25 - Into the Thresher

Feb 19 2025 34 mins

There are currently too many news stories to fit into the "ominous portents of a dark future" file, so I've chosen a few of the most flagrant examples of Trump/Musk savagery to share, along with some reflections on how to fight for our minds and for each other as the world heads down the toilet. Check out our Patreon for more: patreon.com/nostalgiatrap