I’m not sure if this was already in the works before pirate-mania set sail once more near the end of HBO Max‘s Our Flag Means Death season one, or if this was put together quickly to capitalize on the renewed interest, but PBS Digitial has a series that is scratching that itch! Housed under PBS Origins (which features shows like Origin of Everything, A People’s History of Asian America, and a Historian’s Take), Rogue History, hosted by maritime archeologist and historian Joel Cook, explores the history of outlaws made famous by their time at sea.
Like NewsHour, PBS Digital programming has a special place in my heart and would eventually lead me to finding this very site. So, if there’s something cool going on that relates to what we love talking about in pop culture, I’m going to share. We’ve got you covered on Stede’s history and the problem with pirate history, but this show can give us more insight as to the topic more broadly and hyper specifically. We look to the experts, and it’s hard to get more expert than a host and co-writer who’s a literal maritime archeologist.
Since launching on October 13, Rogue History has released two videos, “What Pop Culture Gets Wrong About Pirates” and “Black Caesar: The Dozens of Pirates Behind The Legend.” This looks like it will be a bi-monthly appearance, with episode three dropping sometime this week. While the second episode gets into a famous pirate (or more accurately, pirates), the first episode sets the scene with some important questions about what we know about pirates, and what influences that frame of reference. Why do certain pirates during a small period of time capture our imagination over the 2000+ years of piracy at sea? And what does that say about us?
(featured image: HBO Max)
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