The bar will be set high when Malcolm Gladwell debuts his new podcast next week. The Pushkin Industries cofounder is teaming up with iHeartPodcasts to produce a new series that reveals the stories of some of our nation's heroes. Each week, Gladwell will profile one Medal of Honor recipient's life and courageous actions while exploring themes like what it is that makes a hero, why people put their lives in danger for others, what human beings are capable of, and the true nature of sacrifice.
“Why do we tell stories about heroes? Because every story needs a hero,” says Gladwell on the trailer for Medal of Honor: Stories of Courage. “We tell stories about heroes because of a simple fact about the human mind: Courage is contagious. And when you hear about someone doing something heroic, it makes you want to be a hero too. And these days, we could use more heroes.”
The new series will feature in its first season stories that span from the Civil War to the Iraq War, with medal recipients including Henry Johnson, a “Harlem Hellfighter” who, despite his valor on the battlefields of France during World War I, returned home to a different type of battle due to his race. Another episode will tell the story of Mary Walker, the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor – the highest military decoration that the U.S. awards. And another will focus on Douglas A. Munro, the first person to receive the medal for actions performed during service in the Coast Guard.
“We’ll think about what it is that makes a hero. Why people put their lives in danger for others. What human beings are capable of. And the true nature of sacrifice,” Gladwell says. “This show is about those heroes. What they did, and what it meant. And what their stories tell us about the nature of courage and sacrifice - -not just for our country, but for each other.”
New episodes of Medal of Honor: Stories of Courage will be released each Wednesday starting June 26. The show was made possible by the support of American Military University, LifeLock, Navy Federal Credit Union and Mint Mobile.
Comments