Covering every hamlet and precinct in America, big and small, the stories span arts and sports, business and history, innovation and adventure, generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love, past and present. In short, Our American Stories tells the story of America to Americans.
About Lee Habeeb
Lee Habeeb co-founded Laura Ingraham’s national radio show in 2001, moved to Salem Media Group in 2008 as Vice President of Content overseeing their nationally syndicated lineup, and launched Our American Stories in 2016. He is a University of Virginia School of Law graduate, and writes a weekly column for Newsweek.
For more information, please visit ouramericanstories.com.
Before Modern Televangelists, There Was Aimee Semple McPherson
How Mars Inc. Quietly Took Over the Candy Industry (and Then Some)
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Mars became one of the most powerful private companies in America, it was a struggling family candy shop. Frank Mars had failed time and time again before his son, Forrest, stepped in with a bold vision and zero interest in playing by industry rules. With names like M&M’s, Snickers, and Pedigree under its belt, Mars would go on to quietly outgrow Hershey, Kellogg’s, and even McDonald’s. Simon Whistler from Today I Found Out and The BrainFood Show tells the story of a father and son, an empire built on chocolate, and the cutthroat decisions that made it a global giant.
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The Hilarious Story of New Mexico’s Infamous “Pointy Hat” Amendment
On this episode of Our American Stories, former Duncan Scott quickly learned that an “educated monkey” could have occupied his New Mexico Senate seat with little effect on the direction of state politics. So instead of writing another bill destined to die in committee, Scott decided to make his point another way. The result was the infamous “Pointy Hat Amendment,” one of the funniest, strangest, and most bizarre proposed amendments in American political history.
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Everything Is Gambling Now: The Rise, Reign, and Rule of Sports Gambling
On this episode of Our American Stories, sports betting has existed since the days of the Roman Colosseum, but for most Americans, legal sports gambling was largely confined to Las Vegas casinos.
That changed in 2018 when, at the urging of New Jersey, the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, clearing the way for legalized sports betting across the country. Suddenly, millions of Americans could place wagers from their phones in seconds. Danny Funt, author of Everybody Loses, shares the story behind the rise of sports gambling, the consequences of its easy accessibility, and why leagues like the Major League Baseball, National Football League, and National Basketball Association all embraced what was once considered a cardinal sin in professional sports.
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This Day in History: How George Strait’s “Love Without End, Amen” Was Born
On this episode of Our American Stories, before Love Without End, Amen became one of George Strait’s most beloved hits, it was a prayer set to music. Songwriter Aaron Barker wrote it after a painful argument with his teenage son, an experience that brought him to his knees with his guitar. Out of that moment came a song about grace, fatherhood, and the unconditional love that defines family. Our own Lee Habeeb shares the story.
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How a Father’s Desperate Prayer Created Braveheart
On this episode of Our American Stories, before writing Braveheart, Randall Wallace was a struggling writer and father questioning whether he had made a terrible mistake in choosing his path. Fearing he would fail his children and desperate for direction, Wallace prayed one of the most honest prayers of his life. Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast in 2011, and surrounded by dignitaries from around the nation, Wallace shared how that desperate prayer ultimately led him to write the movie that would change his life. Our own Lee Habeeb tells the story.
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After Losing His Son and Taking Two Lives, This Officer Nearly Lost Himself
On this episode of Our American Stories, Charles Scott dreamed of becoming a police officer from the time he was a child growing up in California’s Central Valley. Years later, while serving with the Lompoc Police Department, Scott endured a devastating series of tragedies in just 16 months: two officer-involved shootings and the death of his teenage son Noah from leukemia. As grief and trauma pushed him into a dark emotional spiral, Scott began to question whether he could survive personally or professionally. With help from 911 At Ease International, he slowly found a path back to healing, family, faith, and police work.
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Why Shirley Chisolm Reached a Man Who Built His Career on Racism
On this episode of Our American Stories, few figures in twentieth-century American politics stood farther apart than Shirley Chisholm and George Wallace. Chisholm broke barriers as a Black congresswoman and presidential candidate. Wallace became a national symbol of segregation and resistance to civil rights.
A tragic event brought them together, forging an unlikely connection. Special thanks to the Jack Miller Center for bringing this story to our attention.
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Story of a Song: The Real Story Behind “My Sharona”
On this episode of Our American Stories, when My Sharona exploded onto radio stations in 1979, it became one of the biggest rock songs in America and turned The Knack into overnight stars. But behind the iconic guitar riff and unforgettable chorus was a real woman named Sharona Alperin. In this installment of our Story of a Song series, our own Greg Hengler shares how a chance meeting inspired one of rock music’s most recognizable hits, featuring reflections from Sharona herself and songwriter Doug Fieger.
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She Took In Her Husband’s Affair Baby as Her Own
On this episode of Our American Stories, Mary Sparks lived through heartbreak, secrecy, infidelity, and family scandal, but her Catholic faith shaped the way she responded to each one. First, as a young woman in Indiana, she refused to give up her daughter born out of wedlock. Decades later, after learning her husband had fathered a child during an affair, Mary made another extraordinary decision: she helped raise the boy as her own son. Mary’s son Sparky shares the remarkable story of faith, forgiveness, adoption, and family that held the Sparks family together through decades of hardship.
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