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How the Factory Made Our World

Black and white print of world's first factory.
Public Domain
The world's first factory, Lombe's Mill, in Derby, England.

Historian Joshua Freeman joins us to talk about the history of factories, which is really interesting when you consider the lives of the people who've worked in them and how they've shaped our world.

RadioWest divider.

Look around the room and you’ll be hard-pressed to find something that wasn’t created in a factory. The products are ubiquitous and modern life would grind to a halt without them. Tuesday, we’re considering the factory with historian Joshua Freeman. At times we’ve thought about industrialization as a symbol of morality and progress; at others, they’ve been a stand-in for exploitation and dehumanization. We’ll talk with Freeman about how we live and work, and how the factory has shaped our world.

Joshua Freeman is a distinguished professor of history at Queens College, City University of New York. His new book is called  Behemoth: A History of the Factory and the Making of the Modern World. [Indie bookstores|Amazon|Audible]

Doug Fabrizio has been reporting for KUER News since 1987, and became News Director in 1993. In 2001, he became host and executive producer of KUER's RadioWest, a one hour conversation/call-in show on KUER 90.1 in Salt Lake City. He has gained a reputation for his thoughtful style. He has interviewed everyone from Isabel Allende to the Dalai Lama, and from Madeleine Albright to Desmond Tutu. His interview skills landed him a spot as a guest host of the national NPR program, "Talk of the Nation." He has won numerous awards for his reporting and for his work with RadioWest and KUED's Utah NOW from such organizations as the Society of Professional Journalists, the Utah Broadcasters Association, the Public Radio News Directors Association and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.