Smithsonian curators Candace Green and Emil Her Many Horses outline the nature of Lakota winter counts, pictorial documents which identified each year by an important event, and discuss what may be learned from these today.

Hillary Rodham Clinton discusses her life and experiences, including the development of her original interest in politics, her thoughts on history education, her perception of the role of First Lady, her campaign for Senator, challenges she sees facing the U.S. in the future, what she believes is required in a leader to address these problems, and some thoughts on the George W. Bush administration.

To listen to this interview, scroll to "Hillary Rodham Clinton" and select "Watch the Video."

A talk with Dr. Lonnie Bunch, founding director of the new National Museum of African American History, about the new African-American Museum. This Smithsonian Institution museum has been decades in the making and soon will be assigned a location in downtown Washington, DC. "It is a challenge to make sure that this is a museum that allows people to revel in African-American culture," Dr. Bunch has noted, "but it [will also be] a museum that says what it means to be an American. Everyone will want to come here because it will help us understand courage and resiliency and other traits."

To view this lecture, scroll to "Lonnie Bunch," and select "Watch the Video."

Lynne Cheney talks about the way Americans have come to perceive their past. She uses her recent book, A Time for Freedom: What Happened When in America, as a jumping-off point for discussing her longstanding interest in the education of young people in American history.

To listen to this lecture, scroll to "Lynne Cheney" and select "Watch the Video."

Professor Lawrence Levine looks at the popular culture of the 1930s, during the Great Depression, and what it reveals about culture and society as a whole at the time. He looks at Superman, comics, and superheroes; private detectives in fiction; and gangsters in fiction.

Professor Jack Rakove looks at the creation of the Bill of Rights by the Founding Fathers, focusing particularly on James Madison's work and beliefs related to the Bill of Rights. He uses writings by Madison as a framework.

Professor Lauren Coodley reviews the life of writer and activist Upton Sinclair. She focuses on the details of his life not commonly included in his popular image as a "muckraker."

Professor Dee Andrews reviews the life of Benjamin Franklin, focusing on Franklin's own written materials as a window into his personality and the culture and times within which he lived.

Professor Clarence Walker reviews the life of abolitionist Frederick Douglass, drawing on Douglass's first autobiography.

Michael Ray narrates a basic introduction to the Battle of the Alamo and popular memory of the battle. The presentation looks briefly at how films and fiction have reimagined the story of the Alamo and distorted historical facts.