Overview

• At a New York Town Hall event tied to The Atlantic Festival, Burns, Tom Hanks and collaborators screened selections and discussed the threat to presenting a 'full history.'
• Hanks is confirmed to voice multiple historical figures, contributing to a narration approach that blends expert analysis with character voices.
• The filmmakers highlight founders' slaveownership and present scholarship on Native American influence on the nation’s formation to challenge simplified origin stories.
• Burns said PBS encouraged them to 'dive deep' into conflict and declared 'PBS is not going anywhere' despite public broadcasting funding being stripped.
• Coverage links the panel’s framing to President Trump’s recent orders targeting 'woke' museum content and his move to remove CPB funding, sharpening debates over how U.S. history is told ahead of 2026.