144: A Conversation with Ken Burns - Storytelling and the American Buffalo

History That Doesn't Suck

Professor Greg Jackson sits down with legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns about his latest film The American Buffalo which has a two-part premiere in the US on PBS beginning Monday, Oct. 16, 2023.

Some refer to Ken Burns as a historian, but he would be quick to tell you that he considers himself a storyteller.

His latest documentary The American Buffalo is a sort of biography of the American bison, or the buffalo as they are more commonly known. The fact is, we would only know of buffaloes from history books if it weren’t for a collective effort to save this species from the brink of extinction in the late 19th century. It’s a remarkable story of how conservationists and hunters alike pulled together to repair some of what had been pulled apart by unchecked slaughter and displacement of wildlife and indigenous peoples.

HTDS listeners will recognize some of the historical context surrounding this tale from our episodes on the Indian Wars, the Transcontinental Railroad and Teddy Roosevelt.

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