Ward Churchill, CU & a Controversy That Still Echoes Today!

Podcasts > Peter Boyles Show Podcast

Saturday, August 15, 2026

The Peter Boyles Show August 15, 2026 HOUR 1: Peter Boyles looks back at one of Colorado talk radio's most controversial chapters following the death of former University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill.

Dan Caplis joins Peter to remember the Churchill controversy, the investigative work surrounding it, the discovery of old audio recordings, Churchill's eventual dismissal from CU, and the political firestorm that followed. Peter raises a provocative question: Would the same controversy produce the same reaction today? But the conversation quickly becomes larger than Ward Churchill.

Peter connects the battles of the past with today's political climate, the renewed appeal of socialism among younger Americans, the role of government, generational frustration and the idea that history moves through recurring periods of upheaval. During open lines, a caller introduces the concept of the Fourth Turning—the theory that generations periodically reach moments of crisis in which institutions are challenged and rebuilt.

Peter considers that idea alongside earlier periods of American populism, socialism and political upheaval. As Peter puts it: “The song remains the same. History is repetitive.”