Dan Carlin (born November 14, 1965)[1] is an American podcaster and political commentator. Previously a professional radio host, Carlin hosts three popular independent podcasts: Hardcore History, Hardcore History: Addendum, and Common Sense, for which he received recognitions and awards, including best educational and history podcasts, and ranking among the best podcasts of all time. His first book was published in 2019, and he has been involved in a range of other media appearances and collaborations.

Dan Carlin
Born (1965-11-14) November 14, 1965 (age 58)[1]
EducationUniversity of Colorado, Boulder (Bachelor of Arts)
Occupation
  • Podcaster
Children2
Parent(s)Lynn Carlin (mother) and Ed Carlin (father)
Career
ShowCommon Sense, Hardcore History
WebsiteOfficial website

Background edit

Carlin obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Colorado Boulder.[2] He broke into the television news business in Los Angeles in the late 1980s and covered the 1992 Los Angeles riots.[3] He has worked as a television news reporter, an author, a columnist, and a radio talk show host.[citation needed] Carlin has also achieved recognition in internet radio, podcasting, and the blogosphere.

Carlin is the son of Academy Award nominated actress Lynn Carlin and film producer Ed Carlin.[4][5] He lives in Eugene, Oregon, and he was formerly a reporter for KVAL-TV.[6]

Podcasts edit

Common Sense edit

Common Sense began in 2005, and is similar in scope to several Carlin-hosted radio programs that aired between 1994 and 2004.[5][7] He has described his political philosophy as "neoprudentist", taking a skeptical approach to evaluation of the current political trends and forces. He fosters discussion by developing and presenting self-deprecating ("Martian") thought experiments on solutions to current problems. The podcasts are said to be broadcast "almost live from the end of runway two here at the Emerald International Airport."[citation needed]

Common Sense was nominated for a Podcast Award in the Politics/News category in 2012 and 2013.[8] The podcast, as of 2016, generated about 700,000 downloads per episode.[5] Common Sense went through an almost two-year hiatus beginning in May 2018 and ending on April 1, 2020, with episode 319: "A Recipe for Caesar."

Hardcore History edit

Carlin's podcasts are hardly reminiscent of the dry history lectures you might remember from school. Carlin puts the "hardcore" in Hardcore History by focusing his narratives on the most violent and dramatic moments in human history, filling his show with colorful anecdotes that were most likely left out of your high school history class.

— Christopher R. Matthews[9]

Hardcore History is Carlin's forum for exploring topics throughout world history. The focus of each episode varies widely from show to show but they are generally centered on specific historical events and are discussed in a "theater of the mind" style. New episodes are released approximately every four to seven months.[10]

Hardcore History, which has millions of downloads per episode, received over 350,000 downloads in a 24-hour period on May 6, 2015.[11] It was nominated in 2012 for a Stitcher Award in the Best Educational & Learning Podcast category.[12] In addition, Carlin has received the Best Classic Podcast in iTunes' Best of 2014 awards,[13] Best Educational Podcast of 2015 from the Podcast Awards,[14] Best History Podcast of 2018 from the IHeartRadio Podcast Awards,[15] and in a top 25 best podcasts list in anniversary of 10 years of podcasts, Slate ranked Dan Carlin's 2009 episode "Ghosts of the Ostfront", regarding the Eastern Front of World War II, the fifth best podcast of all time.[16]

Hardcore History: Addendum is an ancillary podcast feed which features "interviews, musings and extra material" that are more short form and deemed not to fit into the main Hardcore History feed.[17] In addition to interviewing historians, notable guests interviewed on Hardcore History: Addendum include Elon Musk, Tom Hanks, Malcolm Gladwell and Max Brooks.[18][19][20][21]

Other projects edit

The End Is Always Near edit

Carlin's first book, The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses, was released October 29, 2019, by HarperCollins Publishers.[22] The book examines apocalyptic moments from history as a way to frame the challenges of the future.

War Remains edit

In 2019 Carlin developed a virtual reality experience in coordination with MWM Immersive and Skywalker Sound. The "Immersive Memory" is designed to put the viewer deeply into the experience of trench warfare along the Western Front of the First World War.[23] War Remains premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and subsequently shown in other venues around the United States. The exhibit is now on display at the National World War 1 Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri.[23][24]

Political views edit

Carlin has referred to himself as a constitutionalist, social libertarian,[25] a "radical", "neo-prudentist", "pragmatist", and "political martian".[26] He is outspoken on issues like state surveillance, foreign intervention, concentrated power, free speech, education reform, the problems of a two-party system, and civil liberties.

Carlin stated he would vote for Joe Biden in the 2020 Presidential election, despite not voting for Democrats or Republicans since 1992. He considers Donald Trump dangerous stating that he has authoritarian tendencies.[27]

Other podcast and media appearances edit

Carlin has made guest appearances on numerous other podcasts, including Roifield Brown's "10 American Presidents Podcast" where he narrated the episode on Richard Nixon,[28] Daniele Bolelli's The Drunken Taoist Podcast,[29] and "History on Fire",[30] making five appearances on The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast,[31][32][33][34] two appearances on Smells Like Human Spirit[35][36] and on a "crosscast" podcast on Sam Harris's Making Sense (formerly Waking Up).[37]

Carlin has served as a panelist on CBS This Morning[38] and was invited to speak at the TEDx Mt. Hood Conference on May 2, 2015.[39][40] Carlin appeared on season 17 of Real Time with Bill Maher on October 25, 2019, as part of the panel while promoting his book The End Is Always Near.[41][42] Carlin's voice was featured as a podcast host in a 2019 episode of The Twilight Zone entitled "Nightmare at 30,000 Feet".[43]

Carlin has a chapter giving advice in Tim Ferriss' book Tools of Titans.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Daniel L Carlin born on November 14, 1965 in Los Angeles County, California". CaliforniaBirthIndex.org. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  2. ^ Dan Carlin (8 June 2014). "Common Sense Archive: Show 276 - Past Transgressions". dancarlin.com (Podcast). Event occurs at 16 minutes. Archived from the original on 21 June 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
  3. ^ "Dan Carlin: "The New Golden Age of Oral Historical Storytelling" | Talks at Google". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2017-11-06.
  4. ^ Hart, Benjamin (2015-11-12). "America's Best History Teacher Doesn't Work at a School". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 2017-09-07. Retrieved 2017-11-06.
  5. ^ a b c "Political podcaster Dan Carlin has an unusual spin on rage". Los Angeles Times. 2016-07-15. ISSN 0458-3035. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-07.
  6. ^ CIPOLLE, ALEX V. "Q&A with Hardcore History's Dan Carlin: Print Edition". Eugene Weekly. Archived from the original on 27 January 2018. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  7. ^ Archives, Daily Emerald. "KUGN's un-Savage broadcasting". Emerald Media. Archived from the original on 2016-04-23. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
  8. ^ "The People's Choice Podcast Awards". The Podcast Award. PodcastAwards.com. Archived from the original on 6 January 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  9. ^ Matthews, Christopher (August 29, 2013). "Despite Being Oh-So 2005, Podcasting Is Drawing Listeners and Advertisers Alike". Time. Time Inc. Archived from the original on April 28, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  10. ^ Staff Writer (2019-06-20). "New music, Wanda Sykes, Hardcore History and more you need to know". Inlander. Archived from the original on 2019-06-21. Retrieved 2019-10-30. New episodes come out about every six months
  11. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (23 June 2015). "Obama Interview Sets Download Record for Maron Podcast". ArtsBeat. Archived from the original on 2016-05-30. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
  12. ^ "The 2012 Stitcher Awards". Archived from the original on November 12, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  13. ^ CIPOLLE, ALEX V. (December 24, 2014). "Q&A with Hardcore History's Dan Carlin: Print Edition". Eugene Weekly. Archived from the original on January 27, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2015 – via EUGENEWEELY.COM.
  14. ^ "Podcast Awards - Past Winners 2005-2016". www.podcastawards.com. Archived from the original on 2019-12-10. Retrieved 2018-11-15.
  15. ^ "iHeartRadio Podcast Awards". iHeartRadio Podcast Awards. Archived from the original on 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2019-01-23.
  16. ^ Haglund, David; Onion, Rebecca (2014-12-14). "The 25 Best Podcast Episodes Ever". Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Archived from the original on 2016-09-11. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  17. ^ "Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum". dchhaddendum.libsyn.com. Archived from the original on 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
  18. ^ "Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP19 Asymmetrical Perspectives". dchhaddendum.libsyn.com. Archived from the original on 2022-05-24. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  19. ^ "Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP17 Engineering Victory with Elon". dchhaddendum.libsyn.com. Archived from the original on 2022-05-30. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  20. ^ "Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP13 Gladwell and the Bomber Mafia". dchhaddendum.libsyn.com. Archived from the original on 2022-05-30. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  21. ^ "Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum: EP12 Wolf Pack Hunting with Hanks". dchhaddendum.libsyn.com. Archived from the original on 2022-05-30. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  22. ^ "The End Is Always Near - Dan Carlin - Paperback". HarperCollins Publishers: World-Leading Book Publisher. Archived from the original on 2019-08-31. Retrieved 2019-08-26.
  23. ^ a b "War Remains". War Remains. Archived from the original on 2019-08-31. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
  24. ^ City, Inscription on the Liberty Memorial Tower in Downtown Kansas; Missouri; U.S.A. (2021-04-01). "War Remains". National WWI Museum and Memorial. Archived from the original on 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
  25. ^ "Common Sense with Dan Carlin: Show 317 - Shades of Grey on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  26. ^ "Dan Carlin". www.learnliberty.org. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  27. ^ Carlin, Common Sense with Dan. "Common Sense with Dan Carlin - Show 320 - Steering Into the Iceberg". Google Podcasts. Archived from the original on 2020-10-03. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  28. ^ "Dan Carlin". 22 January 2015. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  29. ^ "Dan Carlin, The Man Who Makes History Fun". The Drunken Taoist. Archived from the original on 27 October 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  30. ^ "Episode 19". History on Fire. Archived from the original on 3 May 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  31. ^ Rogan, Joe. "Dan Carlin, Episode 328". The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast. Archived from the original on 28 February 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  32. ^ Rogan, Joe. "Dan Carlin, Episode 378". The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast. Archived from the original on 6 August 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  33. ^ Rogan, Joe. "Dan Carlin, Daniele Bolelli, Episode 413". The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  34. ^ Rogan, Joe. "Dan Carlin, Episode 847". The Joe Rogan Experience Podcast. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  35. ^ "Dan Carlin Interview". Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  36. ^ "Episode 153: Dan Carlin on Addiction, Net Neutrality, Edward Snowden, and More!". Smells Like Human Spirit Podcast. Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  37. ^ Harris, Sam. "Shouldering the Burden of History". Waking Up. Archived from the original on 18 August 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  38. ^ "World War I, A Century Later, June 28, 2014". CBS News This Morning. Archived from the original on 11 July 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  39. ^ "Speaker Detail, Dan Carlin". TEDxMtHood. Archived from the original on 15 December 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  40. ^ "The New Media's Coming of Age". YouTube. TEDxMtHood. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  41. ^ "Real Time with Bill Maher Season 17 Episode 32". HBO. Archived from the original on 29 October 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  42. ^ "Submit Your Overtime Questions for October 25, 2019". Real Time with Bill Maher Blog. Archived from the original on 29 October 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  43. ^ "'The Twilight Zone': Who's the Host of the Creepy Podcast in 'Nightmare at 30,000 Feet'?". Decider. 2019-04-01. Archived from the original on 2020-06-25. Retrieved 2020-04-13.

External links edit