Greg Jackson records one of the world's most popular history podcasts from his basement in Lehi. Now the rest of the country is reading what he has to say.

Jackson's book "Been There, Done That: How Our History Shows What We Can Overcome," published by Simon & Schuster on June 16, argues that the political turmoil Americans feel isn't new and isn't fatal. The 432-page hardcover draws on eight historical episodes to make the case that contested elections, fake news and political violence have deep roots in the American experiment.

"There's a new face to it, because technology changes, but the underlying issues — things like fake news, deeply partisan news, political violence, contested elections — none of this is new," Jackson told the Salt Lake Tribune in a July 27 interview. "It's been a part of the American experience from day one."

Jackson is an associate professor at Utah Valley University, where he holds the title of America 250 Professor in the Center for Constitutional Studies and serves as a senior fellow in the Center for National Security Studies. He holds a PhD in history from the University of Utah.

His podcast, "History That Doesn't Suck," launched in 2017 and has been downloaded more than 100 million times worldwide, the Deseret News reported Sunday. It ranks No. 4 on Apple's history podcast charts and pulls more than 30,000 downloads per day. All of it is produced in the sound studio Jackson built in the basement of the home he shares with his wife Sue and their family in Lehi.

The book grew out of Jackson's travels with his one-man stage show, "The Unlikely Union," which is streaming on most PBS stations. Audiences kept telling him America was on the precipice, that things had never been worse.

Jackson disagreed.

The historical episodes he chose span from the founding era through 1900. Benjamin Franklin printing a fake newspaper supplement full of falsehoods about British atrocities during the Revolutionary War. The hyperpartisan print war between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton in the 1790s. Rep. Preston Brooks caning Sen. Charles Sumner on the Senate floor. The disputed presidential election of 1876, which Jackson calls "The Most Corrupt Presidential Election Ever."

Jackson deliberately excluded the Civil War and more recent upheavals such as Vietnam War protests, Watergate and the Civil Rights movement, reasoning that he did not want readers to conclude that division is a new development, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.

The book arrives at a moment when a PBS/Marist poll conducted in late June found that nearly half of Americans believe the nation has strayed far from its founding principles and 37% agree that violence may be necessary to correct the country's course.

Tara Westover, the No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of "Educated," called Jackson "vivid and irreverent" and "one of the funniest historians writing today" in a cover blurb. Utah Sen. John Curtis also endorsed the book.

"Been There, Done That" is available at major retailers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target and Walmart, as well as through Simon & Schuster. An audiobook edition read by Jackson is also available. The hardcover lists at $31.