On November 4, 1979, student militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, seizing dozens of American diplomats and staff. Their protest—sparked by the U.S. decision to admit the exiled Shah of Iran for medical treatment—quickly became a geopolitical standoff that lasted 444 days.

In this episode, Kona Gallagher revisits the tense beginnings of the Iran Hostage Crisis, tracing how a small group of students reshaped world politics and upended American life.

From President Carter’s economic sanctions and the failed Operation Eagle Claw rescue attempt to the hostages’ eventual release on January 20, 1981, this story reveals how one event transformed diplomacy, media, and public trust.

The crisis outlasted one presidency, launched a nightly television ritual, and left emotional and political scars that endure to this day.

#IranHostageCrisis #HistoryPodcast #JimmyCarter #OnThisDay

On November 3, 1979, a march against the Ku Klux Klan in Greensboro, North Carolina, turned into a deadly confrontation. Members of the Klan and the American Nazi Party opened fire on anti-Klan demonstrators from the Communist Workers Party, killing five people and wounding several others. The entire attack — just 88 seconds of gunfire — was captured on live news cameras.

The massacre shocked the nation and ignited years of controversy, investigations, and trials. Despite televised footage and eyewitnesses, two separate criminal juries acquitted all of the shooters. Only a later civil trial would assign responsibility — not for murder, but for the city’s failure to protect its citizens.

In this episode, host Kona Gallagher revisits how a city’s divisions, informants, and missed warnings led to tragedy — and how Greensboro spent decades confronting its own past.

#greensboromassacre #onthisday #truecrime

On November 2, 2016, 34-year-old Sherri Papini vanished while out for a jog near her home in Redding, California. For three weeks, her disappearance gripped the nation — until she reappeared on Thanksgiving morning, claiming she’d been abducted by two women and held captive.

Her story sparked sympathy, fundraising, and a multi-agency investigation. But years later, DNA evidence and digital records revealed the truth: Papini had staged her own disappearance and spent those missing weeks with an ex-boyfriend hundreds of miles away.

In this episode, host Kona Gallagher revisits the twists, the investigation, and the aftermath of a hoax that deceived a community, wasted public resources, and left behind a lasting scar of mistrust.

#sherripapini #hoax #truecrime