Retro Report

Retro Report Stories from history that help you understand today. Explore 250+ short documentaries: http://RetroRe What really happened? How did these events change us?

How often does a great story dominate the headlines, only to be dropped from the news cycle? How often do journalists tell us of a looming danger or important discovery – only to move quickly to the next new thing? And what are the lingering consequences that may affect our society to this day? These are the questions we are answering at Retro Report, an innovative documentary news organization la

unched in 2013 as a timely online counterweight to today's 24/7 news cycle. Combining documentary techniques with shoe-leather reporting, we peel back the layers of some of the most perplexing news stories of our past with the goal of encouraging the public to think more critically about current events and the media. Retro Report is founded on the conviction that without a smart, engaging and forward-looking review of these high-profile events – and the news coverage surrounding them – we have wasted an opportunity to understand the lessons of history. The accelerating information age makes reversing this trend only more crucial. With journalistic success increasingly measured in page views, retweets and Facebook likes, there is dwindling interest or ability among news organizations to follow up on the stories they cover. Complicating matters, the first draft of history can be wrong. When news organizations fail to invest the time and money required to correct the record or provide context around what really happened, myth can replace truth. The results are policy decisions and cultural trends built on error, misunderstanding or flat-out lies. Retro Report is there to pick up the story after everyone has moved on, connecting the dots from yesterday to today, correcting the record and providing a permanent living library where viewers can gain new insight into the events that shaped their lives.

08/02/2025

, are you looking for engaging, interactive resources to use with your students this upcoming fall?

Browse our variety of interactive tools and maps on our website today: https://retroreport.org/video-library/?type=Multi-media

Tag a teacher in the comments who would be interested in using one of these resources in their classrooms.

A gunman shot and killed four people before taking his own life at a Midtown Manhattan office building on Monday. In a n...
08/01/2025

A gunman shot and killed four people before taking his own life at a Midtown Manhattan office building on Monday. In a note, he claimed to have C.T.E., a degenerative brain disease associated with repeated head trauma. He was a former high school football player, and was reportedly targeting the N.F.L. offices.

This short doc looks at how growing concerns over C.T.E. is changing the future of contact sports like football and boxing. Learn more:

Retro Report is an independent, nonprofit newsroom creating trusted documentary videos and classroom resources.

Do you teach ? Visit our website today to access our new curriculum-aligned subject page. Our English and Language Arts...
08/01/2025

Do you teach ? Visit our website today to access our new curriculum-aligned subject page. Our English and Language Arts page features resources on historical context for popular books, journalism & the role of the press, and media literacy. Learn more:

Retro Report is an independent, nonprofit newsroom creating trusted documentary videos and classroom resources.

, create your free Retro Report account today to access hundreds of exclusive, classroom-ready lesson plans, student ac...
08/01/2025

, create your free Retro Report account today to access hundreds of exclusive, classroom-ready lesson plans, student activities, our weekly education newsletter, and more. Register: bit.ly/RR-Reg

07/31/2025

In the first half of 2025, thousands of teachers took advantage of our free student activities for social studies courses on our website.

Take a look at the five most-used student activities for social studies classrooms in the first half of 2025. Our activities are created and vetted by educators. Sign in with your free teacher account to access these resources today: https://retroreport.org/articles/the-5-most-popular-social-studies-activities-in-2025/

Calling all teachers! Are you looking for engaging, free resources to use with your students in the upcoming school ye...
07/31/2025

Calling all teachers! Are you looking for engaging, free resources to use with your students in the upcoming school year? Check out our new curriculum-aligned subject page today to access short docs, lesson plans and student activities organized by topic: https://retroreport.org/collection/biology/

Calling all and teachers! Check out our new curriculum-aligned subject page today, which features short docs, lesson...
07/30/2025

Calling all and teachers! Check out our new curriculum-aligned subject page today, which features short docs, lesson plans and student activities on topics such as constitutional principles and public policy. Learn more: https://retroreport.org/collection/civics-and-government/

, mark your calendars for a FREE webinar with Retro Report and Pulitzer Center on August 13. The webinar will explore r...
07/29/2025

, mark your calendars for a FREE webinar with Retro Report and Pulitzer Center on August 13. The webinar will explore resources and approaches for covering World War II, ethical decision making, and the human costs of conflict.

Timed to coincide with the 80th Anniversary of the use of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, educators will come away with ready-to-use classroom resources and get to converse with Retro Report Senior Producer Scott Michels. Register today: https://retroreport.org/listings/events/atomic-bomb-survivors-and-the-lessons-of-nuclear-war/.

, our new curriculum-aligned U.S. History subject page makes it even easier to discover free Retro Report short docs, l...
07/29/2025

, our new curriculum-aligned U.S. History subject page makes it even easier to discover free Retro Report short docs, lessons and student activities. Explore the new page today, and access resources on specific eras of U.S. History, such as the American Revolution and the Civil Rights era: https://retroreport.org/collection/u-s-history/

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Retro Report is an Emmy Award-winning independent, objective, nonprofit news organization founded in 2013. We are dedicated to uncovering the surprising ways that news of the past continues to resonate today. Our documentary videos blend investigative reporting and rare archival footage to give viewers meaningful context and perspective on current events.

We operate with the conviction that an engaging and forward-looking review of high-profile events, and the news coverage surrounding them, is critical to understanding the lessons of history and developing robust civic literacy. And, since the stories we report on continue to evolve, we are committed to providing a permanent, living library where each story is tracked and updated so that viewers can gain new insights as events develop and history unfolds.