World War I – The Reluctant Superpower

This episode explores how the U.S. was drawn into World War I after years of neutrality, motivated by German submarine attacks and the Zimmermann Telegram. President Wilson framed the war as a fight to "make the world safe for democracy."American troops played a crucial role in the final year of the war, but the peace that followed—the Treaty of Versailles—sowed seeds for future conflict. The episode highlights America’s rise to global influence, the internal changes the war triggered, and the beginning of its complex role as a world power.