Revisionist History: The Alabama Murders podcast

Revisionist History: The Alabama Murders

Florence, Alabama. 1988. A preacher has an affair. A woman is murdered. One death cascades into more, stretching across decades and leaving no one untouched — victims, bystanders, perpetrators, and those just trying to help. Eventually, the consequences lead to the center of a hot national debate on who should be allowed to live, who should die, and how the state should kill them. On The Alabama Murders, Malcolm Gladwell asks: why, in our efforts to alleviate suffering, do we so often make it worse? Revisionist History is Malcolm Gladwell's journey through the overlooked and the misunderstood. Every episode re-examines something from the past—an event, a person, an idea, even a song—and asks whether we got it right the first time. From Pushkin Industries. Because sometimes the past deserves a second chance. To get early access to ad-free episodes and extra content, subscribe to Pushkin+ in [Apple Podcasts] (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968) are [pushkin.fm/plus] (https://www.pushkin.fm/join-pushkin) . iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

Florence, Alabama. 1988. A preacher has an affair. A woman is murdered. One death cascades into more, stretching across decades and leaving no one untouched — victims, bystanders, perpetrators, and those just trying to help. Eventually, the consequences lead to the center of a hot national debate on who should be allowed to live, who should die, and how the state should kill them. On The Alabama Murders, Malcolm Gladwell asks: why, in our efforts to alleviate suffering, do we so often make it worse? Revisionist History is Malcolm Gladwell's journey through the overlooked and the misunderstood. Every episode re-examines something from the past—an event, a person, an idea, even a song—and asks whether we got it right the first time. From Pushkin Industries. Because sometimes the past deserves a second chance. To get early access to ad-free episodes and extra content, subscribe to Pushkin+ in [Apple Podcasts] (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968) are [pushkin.fm/plus] (https://www.pushkin.fm/join-pushkin) . iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

 

#177

The Alabama Murders - Part 2: Coon Dog Cemetery Road

Florence, Alabama. 1988. After a horrifying murder takes place, an anonymous caller names ... more

02 Oct 2025

33 MINS

33:21

02 Oct 2025


#176

The Alabama Murders - Part 1: The True Church

In a small town in the northwest corner of Alabama, a cascade begins with a man and an aff... more

02 Oct 2025

32 MINS

32:36

02 Oct 2025


#175

The Alabama Murders

Florence, Alabama. 1988. A preacher has an affair. A woman is murdered. One death cascades... more

22 Sep 2025

04 MINS

04:37

22 Sep 2025


#174

Americana Music Live with Drew Holcomb and Malcolm Gladwell

Wrapping up our summer music series, the Memphis-born, East Nashville-based singer songwri... more

14 Aug 2025

1 HR 18 MINS

1:18:11

14 Aug 2025


#173

Encore: Good Old Boys

In 2019, Malcolm just wanted an excuse to hang out with Randy Newman so they sat down at t... more

24 Jul 2025

40 MINS

40:01

24 Jul 2025


#172

Encore: Analysis, Parapraxis, Elvis

Malcolm’s habit of reading footnotes leads him to the psychologist Alan Elms, which ... more

17 Jul 2025

53 MINS

53:20

17 Jul 2025


#171

Encore: The King of Tears

Why does country music make you cry, but rock and roll doesn’t? We revisit a musical... more

10 Jul 2025

43 MINS

43:31

10 Jul 2025


#170

Encore: Hallelujah

How does genius emerge? Kicking off our summer series, Malcolm digs into the Revisionist H... more

03 Jul 2025

38 MINS

38:14

03 Jul 2025


#169

Encores

Starting next week, we revisit four of Malcolm’s favorite episodes from the Revision... more

26 Jun 2025

01 MINS

01:47

26 Jun 2025


#168

The Formula

In our season finale, we team up with the Culinary Institute of America to reverse enginee... more

29 May 2025

36 MINS

36:09

29 May 2025


#167

Nooks & Crannies

Seven people knew the recipe for a half-a-billion dollar muffin. Then, one of them tried t... more

22 May 2025

31 MINS

31:27

22 May 2025


#166

Rat vs. Raccoon

What if we picked the wrong animal? Get ad-free episodes to Revisionist History by subscri... more

15 May 2025

32 MINS

32:07

15 May 2025


#165

Face Value

Malcolm and Lucie discover that they experience something very differently. If you suspect... more

08 May 2025

33 MINS

33:06

08 May 2025


#164

The Origin of “You” – A Conversation with John McWhorter

Malcolm sits down with the linguist John McWhorter, to discuss his new book, Pronoun Troub... more

01 May 2025

49 MINS

49:12

01 May 2025


#163

The Joe Rogan Intervention

The world's most famous interviewer has a problem with interviewing. Revisionist History i... more

24 Apr 2025

37 MINS

37:13

24 Apr 2025


#162

The RFK Jr. Problem

Malcolm investigates the origins of what the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services b... more

17 Apr 2025

33 MINS

33:17

17 Apr 2025


#161

Running Hot

You might think unbelievably loud, shrill sirens on ambulances and fire trucks are just a ... more

10 Apr 2025

45 MINS

45:42

10 Apr 2025