Ronald Reagan’s Make-Believe

Ronald Reagan, as Jackson Lears wrote recently in the LRB, was a ‘telegenic demagogue’ whose ‘emotional appeal was built on white people’s racism’. His presidency left the United States a far more unequal place at home, with a renewed commitment to deadly imperial adventures abroad. Yet he had a gift for making up stories that ‘made America feel good about itself again’. On the latest episode of the LRB podcast, Lears joins Tom to discuss Reagan’s life and self-made legend, from his hardscrabble Midwestern boyhood to the White House by way of Hollywood, and to consider the lasting effects of his presidency.Find further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/reaganpodSponsored link:Sign up for The Syllabus: https://the-syllabus.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.