Talk That Pod

·E13

013 - Kelly Pollock - Unsung History

June 10
42 mins

Episode Description

Kelly Pollock of Unsung History

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SUMMARY

In this episode of Talk That Pod, Sebastian sits down with Kelly Pollock, creator and host of Unsung History, a podcast spotlighting American history through the lives of women, people of color, immigrants, laborers, religious minorities, enslaved people, and Indigenous communities. Kelly traces her path from a religious studies master's program and a long-running politics podcast to building a history show centered on the people conventional narratives leave out. Along the way, she unpacks her distinctive narrative-plus-interview format, her preparation process, how she balances production with a full-time job, and her candid take on what podcasting does (and doesn't) do for how society understands history.

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IN THIS EPISODE

(01:21) How a religious studies background and a 50th-anniversary interview with her parents about the Kent State shootings sparked the idea for a history podcast

(03:39) Why Kelly deliberately centers marginalized stories and turns down pitches about "rich white men" and presidents

(04:34) The two-part format—narrative intro followed by an expert interview—and why writing the intro is the most time-consuming part of every episode

(07:16) How she decides what becomes an episode, and breaking her own rules for guests like Lucy Worsley

(10:24) Her interview prep: reading each guest's book cover to cover while deliberately avoiding their other interviews to keep her questions fresh

(12:02) What makes a great guest, and why historians often outshine politicians as interview subjects

(15:25) The episode that reshaped her thinking: how school desegregation after Brown v. Board cost Black teachers their jobs, with a parallel in the decline of the Negro Leagues after MLB integration

(18:31) Differentiating in a crowded history-podcast space by acting as a "history communicator" rather than a historian, and citing sources

(20:26) Why evergreen content drove faster, more organic growth than her earlier politics podcast, Two Broads Talking Politics

(23:36) Promotion that works: guesting elsewhere, big-name guests resharing episodes, and her "tell me what you like and I'll recommend an episode" social experiment

(25:40) Social media strategy and why she misses old Twitter, with Bluesky now her closest analog

(27:47) A realistic look at her weekly production workflow and the move from weekly to biweekly episodes for the sake of quality and mental health

(31:08) The dream production tool she'd actually pay for: an "on this day in history" matcher that auto-promotes relevant past episodes

(32:27) Her perspective on podcasting, misinformation, and historical access in a politically fraught moment

(37:01) What she hopes listeners take away—more nuance, empathy, and curiosity to seek out further research

(39:41) Kelly's three podcast recommendations and where to find her online

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RESOURCES & LINKS

Podcast recommendations from Kelly:

  • Dig — a history podcast produced by four women historians (PhDs) using primary and academic sources, with full source lists in the show notes
  • Science Friday (NPR) — expert interviews that break down science for everyday listeners
  • Fake the Nation with Negin Farsad — sharp, funny news-and-politics panel show

Also mentioned:


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