In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss the history of telemarketing.
Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:
- The new HBO docuseries Telemarketers is bringing attention to a decades-old industry. Niki drew on this Atlantic article about scams in the industry and this history of the “Do Not Call” registry, and Natalia drew on this Slate piece.
In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History:
- Natalia discussed her latest MSNBC column, “Ramaswamy Amplifies A Strange, Outdated Myth to Back a Genuinely Good Idea.”
- Neil shared about his most recent CNN piece, “Strays is a Raunchy, Hilarious Reminder of a Real Problem.”
- Niki recommended Jonathan Chait’s New York magazine review, “Samuel Moyn Can’t Stop Blaming Trumpism on Liberals.”



![A lantern slideshows four overlapping illustrations of the Earth depicting its tilt at different time periods in the past, present and future. Dates represented are 13000 BC, 5544 BC, 1921 AD, 2296AD. Handwritten in blue ink at bottom left corner of plate is the text 'G53 CLW [illegible] Aug '22'.](https://i0.wp.com/publicseminar.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Wragge_Earth.jpg?fit=768%2C749&ssl=1)









