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Lyndon Johnson and the American dream
Lyndon Johnson and the American dream by Doris Kearns Goodwin, Doris Kearns has been mentioned in 2 episodes across 2 podcasts (0 episodes recommend it and 2 episodes discuss it), through . Most frequently brought up by Walter Isaacson (2 episodes) on EconTalk (1 episode) and Lex Fridman Podcast (1 episode).
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I had a great professor who you know of. Her name then was Doris Kearns. And I took her course. And she wrote her dissertation and published her book. And it was a biography called Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream.
Walter Isaacson · EconTalk · Nov 2026 Listen at 37:04 Why people recommend it
Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream is a sweeping historical biography written by Doris Kearns Goodwin that explores the political life and complex psychology of the thirty-sixth United States president against the backdrop of a changing nation. The book and its academic legacy became a topic of discussion when Walter Isaacson appeared on EconTalk in November 2026. Isaacson reminisced about taking a course taught by the author when she was known as Doris Kearns, recalling how she wrote her dissertation and subsequently published the biography. He noted that the publication became part of a notable controversy within academia regarding biographical methods. Isaacson revisited this history during an appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast in September 2013, explaining that when Kearns was seeking tenure at her university, her biographical work on Lyndon Johnson faced intense scrutiny. He recounted that the institution ultimately denied her tenure because some academics believed it was beneath the dignity of the academy to write history through the lens of a single individual. Through these recollections, podcast guests highlighted the book not only for its historical content but also as a flashpoint in the evolution of biographical standards within higher education.
Every mention
Walter Isaacson I had a great professor who you know of. Her name then was Doris Kearns. And I took her course. And she wro… 2
“I had a great professor who you know of. Her name then was Doris Kearns. And I took her course. And she wrote her dissertation and published her book. And it was a biography called Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream.”
“And when she was going for tenure at the university, she wrote a biography of 'Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream.' They denied her tenure because it was beneath the dignity of the academy to write history through one person.”