Obama Presidency Oral History

Incite at Columbia University
The Obama Presidency as told by 450+ officials, activists, organizers, and extraordinary people from all walks of life.
  • Elizabeth Brown

    White House Staff Secretary

  • Michael Kassen

    AIPAC President

  • Ellen Moran

    White House Communications Director

  • Reggie Love

    Personal Aide to Obama

  • Thomas Kalil

    Science and Technology Policy Official

  • Gina McCarthy

    EPA Administrator

  • Daniel Shomon

    Campaign Strategist and Political Aide

  • David Shulkin

    Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs

  • Rohit Kumar

    Congressional Policy Advisor

  • Jeanne Lambrew

    Health Policy Advisor

  • Angella Reid

    White House Usher

  • LaShana Lewis

    DEI Consultant and Advocate

  • Sandra Fluke

    Reproductive Health Advocate

  • Cecile Richards

    Planned Parenthood President

  • Beverly Daniel Tatum

    University President

  • Elizabeth Alexander

    Inaugural Poet

  • Frank Rose

    Foreign Policy Official

  • Tawakkol Karman

    Human Rights Activist

  • Thomas Tidwell

    Chief of the US Forest Service

  • Melanie Bahnke

    Alaska Native and Arctic Issues Advocate

Elizabeth Brown
White House Staff Secretary
462

Interviews

Explore oral histories in the collection.

Explore all interviews

Between 2019 and 2023 Incite at Columbia University interviewed hundreds of people to produce the official oral history of the Obama presidency. These in-depth interviews, conducted with those inside and outside of the administration, represent roughly 1,100 hours of audio and video that together form a comprehensive record of the Obama years.

Learn more

Stories

Each oral history interview contains dozens of stories. Explore these stories through prepared playlists—or save stories to make your own.

  • go to the interview
    Early activism and protests in Tahrir Square before the Arab Spring Tawakkol Karman
    09:45
  • go to the interview
    Strategies for a successful presidential transition and the shift in focus during Obama's second term Yohannes Abraham
    09:51
  • go to the interview
    Writing a letter to President Obama as a Mandela Washington Fellow Fatou Ba Ndiour
    06:32
  • go to the interview
    Politics and challenges of the DREAM Act and DACA implementation Rebecca Tallent
    06:30
  • go to the interview
    Reaction to a Guardian article on military mental health and public backlash Heather Linebaugh
    06:10
  • go to the interview
    Influence of conversations with Andy Stern on tax and Social Security policy discussions David Cote
    01:02
  • go to the interview
    Discussion on South Sudan's support for rebels and meeting with President Obama Johnnie Carson
    07:26
  • go to the interview
    Learning of the Affordable Care Act passage and celebrating at the White House Jon Favreau
    02:44
  • go to the interview
    Early labor policy changes and enforcement under President Obama Richard Trumka
    01:16
  • go to the interview
    Introduction of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals during the 2012 campaign David Axelrod
    02:46
Explore all stories

Topics

From healthcare to the financial crisis to nuclear nonproliferation, each topic explored in this collection is brought to life by narrators from both inside and outside the Obama administration.

See more topics

Navigate

Navigate the interconnected events and places that make up this history, narrated by the stories of the people who lived it.



Discover

Put thousands of stories in conversation with each other using our experimental collection visualizer.

Discover

News& Events

  • read full text: What a New Oral History Reveals About Obama, and the Tradeoffs He Made
    Peter Baker in The New York Times.
    NewsRead more
  • read full text: An Expansive View Into Obama’s Transformative Presidency
    Caroline Harting in Columbia News.
    NewsRead more
  • read full text: The Obama Presidency Inside-Out: A Conversation About Climate
    New York City
    On May 31, 2023, we gathered in New York City to celebrate the completion of the Obama Presidency Oral History project's fieldwork.
    EventRead more
See more news