In American English, “giving someone the third degree” is an idiom used to describe especially harsh or incessant questioning, but where does this term come from? In this episode of What the History from AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, host Sami Jarroush helps us explore the origins of the term, and how the third degree is connected to the invention of The Lie Detector.
AMERICAN EXPERIENCE’s new film “The Lie Detector” premieres on PBS Tuesday, January 3 at 9/8 central. Visit pbs.org/americanexperience to stream anytime.
Check out Sami Jarroush’s channel, US 101, here: https://www.youtube.com/c/us101
