History of the Modern Middle East - Casual Historian

I only listened to one episode, so maybe others are different, but in the one I heard, your information is great but you narrate too quickly and mechanically. You tell us what happened, but I’d like to understand more of the *why*, at a pace that I can absorb. I could probably slow it down — but what I mean by a slower pace is not just rate of speech but actually more expanding on the events, persons, motivations, geographies, etc. Still, I appreciate your putting this together!

I stopped listening after the first 5 minutes when he said “the discovery of the new world by Columbus”. I think by now we know that Columbus “discovering” America is fiction.

Overall, this is a very interesting podcast about a very fascinating subject. As others have mentioned, the speed of the presentation is rather quick, and I find myself rewinding quite a bit. However, the solid writing makes the episodes enjoyable. Another area of improvement is on the scope and subject of the podcast. While it is about the history of the modern Middle East, it’s very focused on the Ottoman Empire and closely related topics. Of course, you can’t discuss the modern Middle East without devoting a significant amount of attention to the Turks, but the area is incredibly diverse and the history incredibly rich. More focus on other ethnic groups and states would offer a more holistic view as to how West Asia became what it is today. Four stars is a fair rating for this show because, in the end, it is both educational and involving in a way that many other shows are not. If you like Middle Eastern history, I would recommend it for your library.

The podcasater apparently has a rep for having a far-right political axe to grind & cherry picking his facts--see his YT 'hoover was a good president' lecture where one can imagine him wearing clown shoes while spouting out pompous twaddle. Add to that his inability to correctly pronounce some Arabic words--in a history of the Middle East mind you--and you essentially have some dude with a history degree from a toilet-tier college reading out loud and giving his drunk-at-4am opinion. Hard pass.