"Presidential" is the first in a series of podcasts by Washington Post journalist Lillian Cunningham.
Over the course of 44 weekly audio episodes — stretching from January 2016 through Election Day in November — Cunningham chronicled her effort to better understand the lives, legacies and leadership styles of all of the U.S. presidents. She interviewed prominent biographers, historians, White House correspondents and even presidential relatives to create intimate, revealing portraits of each commander in chief week after week. At the heart of the podcast series was this question: What makes for a great American president, and how has that changed over time?
For those seeking to better understand the story of America, and to what extent a single leader — for good or for ill — can change the course of a nation, the "Presidential" podcast is required listening. The series was an Academy of Podcasters finalist for best news and politics podcast, as well as a Webby Awards honoree. It has been downloaded by millions of listeners worldwide since its launch.
In 2017 and 2018, The Post released Cunningham’s second podcast series, "Constitutional," which explored important fights over the U.S. Constitution throughout American history and influential figures who shaped and reshaped the words and spirit of that document over time.
Cunningham's third podcast series, "Moonrise," launched in 2019 — the 50th anniversary of the moon landing — and explores the real origin story of America's decision to go to the moon. The podcast digs into declassified presidential documents, the nuclear arms race of the Cold War, and even the birth of science fiction, to unearth a story that has so much to reveal about our country — and about being human on this Earth.
In 2020, "Presidential" returned with topical bonus episodes for avid listeners, including one on the origin story of the Lincoln Memorial as a protest site and one on Woodrow Wilson’s handling of the 1918 flu pandemic. You can find those and others on the Special Episodes page. Cunningham also released a 45th official episode in the "Presidential" canon — and episode on Joe Biden, following his election in November 2020.
ABOUT THE HOST
Lillian Cunningham has been a journalist with The Washington Post since 2010. She began as the editor and feature writer of The Post’s "On Leadership" section. As part of that work, she was awarded a 2011 Emmy and a 2016 Emmy for a series of video interviews she conducted with leaders in business, politics and the arts. It was the experience covering leadership news and issues that led her to dream up the "Presidential" podcast, which she envisioned as a way to investigate the historical successes and failures of various leadership styles in the White House. She was host, editor and producer of the series. She has since become The Post’s enterprise reporter for audio, working on serialized podcasts including "Constitutional" and "Moonrise."
ABOUT THE ARTWORK AND MUSIC
The presidential figurines of George Washington through Richard Nixon were made by Louis Marx & Co. Figurines of Gerald Ford through Joe Biden were made by Patric M. Verrone. Photos and art direction were by Amy King, and the background illustrations in the photos were made by Craig & Karl for The Washington Post. The design and development was led by Jake Crump. The original music for the podcast, featuring various renditions of "Hail to the Chief," was composed by Dave Westner for The Washington Post.
FIND US ON SOCIAL MEDIA
CONTACT US
Lillian Cunningham: lillian.cunningham@washpost.com The audio team at The Post: podcasts@washpost.com Media and speaking inquiries: community@washpost.com
NEXT IN THE SERIES
The "Constitutional" podcast: Listen here The "Moonrise" podcast: Listen here
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
HOW CAN I LISTEN TO "PRESIDENTIAL"?
"Presidential" is an audio podcast comprising 45 episodes, each around 40 minutes in length, which can be listened to on your computer or mobile device whenever and wherever you would like. It’s free and doesn’t require any special software. Just click "play" on an episode to start listening. Ready to dive in? Visit the Episodes page to listen to the podcast on The Washington Post site, or find it on these other audio platforms: Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and RadioPublic.
DO I HAVE TO LISTEN TO THE EPISODES IN ORDER?
We recommend starting with "Episode 1: George Washington" and working your way up in time, president by president. But it’s fine to skip ahead to "Episode 21: Chester Arthur" if you just can’t wait.
I LOVED "PRESIDENTIAL." CAN I SUGGEST A TOPIC FOR THE NEXT SERIES?
We are already at work on new podcasts, but we are always happy to hear suggestions for future series. In fact, that’s how we got the idea for both "Constitutional" and "Moonrise." You can email the show creator directly at lillian.cunningham@washpost.com.
WHEN’S THE NEXT PODCAST COMING?
We do not yet have release dates for podcasts coming in 2021 and beyond. However, you can be the first to know by signing up here for an email alert, or by following Lillian Cunningham’s Twitter account.
ARE TRANSCRIPTS OF THE PODCAST AVAILABLE ONLINE?
Yes! You asked for them, so we published them. You can find an episode’s transcript by going to the Episodes page, then looking for the "Transcript" link next to each episode’s audio player. If you’re a teacher, you can also find a "Presidential" lesson plan for your students on our Education page.
DO YOU EVER DO EDUCATIONAL SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS?
Due to the nature of our production schedule, it is usually hard to coordinate classroom visits. The best way to inquire about opportunities such as conference panels or school-wide talks is to contact community@washpost.com.
CAN I BUY OR DOWNLOAD THE "PRESIDENTIAL" MUSIC?
Unfortunately the theme music is not publicly available at this time. But we’re so glad you like it!
WHERE CAN I FIND THE PRESIDENTIAL FIGURINES FEATURED IN THE ARTWORK?
The presidential figurines of George Washington through Richard Nixon were made by Louis Marx & Co., and the figurines of Gerald Ford through Joe Biden were made by Patric M. Verrone. You can often find old collector’s sets online through sites like eBay, and you can find Verrone’s newer sets here.
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