How the US became America

This episode of 'Throughline' explores the pivotal moment in 1898 when the United States transitioned from a continental republic to a global empire, marking a profound shift in national identity. The U.S. victory in the Spanish-American War led to the annexation of the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Guam, and Hawaii—territories that were neither states nor consensual parts of the Union. This imperial expansion sparked a moral and existential crisis, as the nation’s founding ideals of liberty and self-government clashed with brutal military campaigns, including the use of waterboarding and mass detention camps in the Philippines. Historian Daniel Imervar reveals that this transformation coincided with a linguistic shift: the U.S. began being widely called 'America' instead of 'the United States,' a change that reflected a new imperial self-image. The episode traces this rebranding to Theodore Roosevelt, whose presidency marked a decisive move toward referring to the nation as 'America,' signaling a departure from the old 'union of states' identity and embracing a more imperial, global role. The episode concludes by questioning how this shift in name and identity continues to shape American self-perception today.