Most people think they know American history. Greg Jackson is not so sure.

A historian, professor, and creator of the hit podcast History That Doesn’t Suck!, Jackson has built a following by challenging familiar narratives and making the past feel urgent again. His work extends well beyond the classroom, from his live stage show The Unlikely Union, which has sold out theaters nationwide, to appearances on HISTORY Channel and National Geographic.

Jackson brings real scholarship without the distance that usually comes with it. As a tenured professor and America 250 Professor at Utah Valley University, his work is grounded in primary sources, but his delivery is built for audiences who want clarity, not lectures. His forthcoming book, Been There, Done That, continues that approach, using history to show what people have actually navigated before.

On stage, Jackson focuses on the moments where things could have gone differently. He draws a direct line between past decisions and the pressures leaders face now, giving audiences a sharper way to think about the present.

History does not come with explanation. Martha MacCallum has made a career of providing it in real time.

Across six presidential elections and decades of breaking news, Martha MacCallum has served as a steady voice in moments that shape public understanding. From September 11th to January 6th, from the funeral of George H. W. Bush to the coronation of King Charles III, she has anchored coverage when the stakes are high and the picture is still forming.

As Anchor and Executive Editor of The Story, she has conducted consequential interviews with presidents, cabinet officials, and Supreme Court justices, including exclusive access at defining moments. Her style is direct and controlled, built for environments where clarity matters and trust is tested.

On stage, MacCallum brings that same perspective. She offers a behind-the-scenes view of how narratives take shape in real time, how leaders communicate under pressure, and what separates information from understanding when it matters most.

Many-time bestselling author, columnist, and commentator John Avlon has been called “a trusted, grounded, and welcome voice” emphasizing bipartisanship and real solutions. He currently hosts a solutions journalism podcast on The Bulwark called How to Fix It and serves as the Chairman of Citizens Union, New York’s oldest good government group. Avlon was a Senior Political Analyst and Anchor at CNN, known for his “Reality Check” segments across the network. He is an award-winning columnist and the author of Independent Nation, Wingnuts, Washington’s Farewell, and Lincoln & the Fight for Peace, which was praised by The New York Times as “a Lincoln for our polarized times…powerful and affecting” and named one of the best books of the year by Vanity Fair and Foreign Affairs. He was the editor-in-chief and managing director of The Daily Beast (2013-8) and served as chief speechwriter for the Mayor of New York. Avlon’s essay, “The Resilient City” was selected to conclude Empire City: New York through the Centuries and won acclaim as “the single best essay written in the wake of 9/11.”

Avlon has appeared multiple times on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Real Time with Bill Maher, The Daily Show, PBS, and C-Span. He has spoken at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, the National Constitution Center, and other civic organizations around the nation. Avlon is also a co-founder of No Labels – a group of Democrats, Republicans and Independents dedicated to the politics of problem-solving and making government work again. Highly regarded for his shrewd analysis of the headlines of the day, offering historic perspective on the current political climate of the U.S., and the role of journalism in politics, Avlon offers reasoned discourse that focuses on real solutions.

Joel Mokyr is a Nobel Prize–winning economic historian and one of the world’s leading thinkers on how innovation actually happens — why certain businesses, industries, and societies leap ahead while others stall. As the Robert H. Strotz Professor at Northwestern University, he has spent decades studying the cultural, institutional, and behavioral forces that spark technological breakthroughs and drive long-term economic growth.

For business audiences, Mokyr offers something rare: a deep, evidence-based understanding of the conditions that consistently produce progress. Drawing on centuries of economic history, he shows how ideas spread, how organizations create environments where creativity flourishes, and how cultures either accelerate or choke off innovation. His insights help leaders think more clearly about productivity, talent, risk, and the dynamics that shape competitive advantage. Engaging, surprising, and always relevant, Mokyr connects the patterns of the past to the strategic choices companies face today — illuminating what it really takes to build a future where growth is not accidental, but designed.