#04 "The Reagan Era: The Good The Bad & The Ugly"
- Podcast Teaser Trailer
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Episode Preview -- "The Reagan Era: The Good The Bad & The Ugly"
- Episode Number
- Student Podcasting History Episode #04
- Episode Title
- #04 "The Reagan Era: The Good The Bad & The Ugly"
- Episode Date
- April 24, 2025
- Key Words
- Reagan Administration, Ronald Reagan, Reaganomics, Economic Growth, Cold War, War on Drugs, Inequality, Law and Order, Inflation, Jerry Falwell, Conservative, Republican
- Episode Introduction
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I studied the Reagan administration and era in the United States. Ronald Reagan was the fortieth president of the United States, he was in office from 1981 to 1989. The legacy of the Regan administration was controversial, complicated and polarizing. Ronald Reagan is remembered by some as the man who restored national pride, fueled economic growth, and helped bring an end to the Cold War. To others, his presidency marked the rise of inequality, the erosion of social programs, and furthering the divide between the left and the right in America.
Reagan’s presidency left a lasting impact and legacy on the United States. Reagan’s economic policies, which came to be known as “Reaganomics” were credited by some with accelerating growth and lowering inflation. However, some argued that his economic policies only nominally helped Americans while ultimately raising the national deficit. His cultural ideas, largely influenced by figures like Jerry Falwell, perpetuated concepts that are still core to the Republican party today. The next important facet of the Reagan administration was the Law and Order movement of the 1980s which coincided with the War on Drugs. These policies were pervasive at the time, Reagan spent billions of dollars in federal funds through a rigorous crackdown that aimed to reduce drug use, but also led to a dramatic rise in incarcerations and created long term challenges for marginalized communities. - Hosted By
- Noah Muroff
- Host Biography
- The host for this episode is Noah Muroff. Noah is a senior Economics major and a History & Business double minor. Students Podcasting History is an educational resource developed by students in Dr. Andrew Maginn’s History of the United States II course to highlight crucial movements in American History through podcasting. The students research and interpret primary and secondary sources to discuss pivotal themes, people, and events in the United States' history from 1865 through the present. Through creatively sharing these narratives and learning digital tools, these students hope to make history more accessible and exciting for the general public.
- The Show
- Students Podcasting History is an educational resource developed by students in Dr. Andrew Maginn’s History of the United States II course to highlight crucial movements in American History through podcasting. The students research and interpret primary and secondary sources to discuss pivotal themes, people, and events in the United States' history from 1865 through the present. Through creatively sharing these narratives and learning digital tools, these students hope to make history more accessible and exciting for the general public.
- Source
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Bagley, Bruce Michael. “US Foreign Policy and the War on Drugs: Analysis of a Policy Failure.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 30, no. 2/3 (1988): 189–212. https://doi.org/10.2307/165986
. Jimmy Carter, “Address to the Nation on Energy and National Goals” (July 15, 1979). Available online via The American Presidency Project
Falwell, Jerry. [Letter from Jerry Falwell on keeping Old Time Gospel Hour on air], Letter, August 13, 1981. Available online via The Portal to Texas History (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc177440/).
Ronald Reagan: “Inaugural Address,” January 20, 1981. Available online via The Avalon Project (http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/reagan1.asp).
George Brown Tindall and David E. Shi, America : A Narrative History, Ninth edition, (New York City, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2013)
Zinsmeister, Karl. “America During the ’80s: Summing up the Reagan Era.” The Wilson Quarterly (1976-) 14, no. 1 (1990): 110–17. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40259495.
Richard Anderson et al., “The Triumph of the Right,” Richard Anderson and William J. Schultz, eds., in The American Yawp, eds. Joseph Locke and Ben Wright (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2018). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9lpo1LMXqI - Contact Information
- https://www.andrewwyattmaginn.org/Digital_Humanities/s/studentspodcastinghistory/page/home