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Washington Post asks why the pre-Columbus explorer gets no credit

The Washington Post argues that the explorer who reached the Americas centuries before Columbus gets little credit in popular history; the earlier arrival still has no parade.

On air: Vera Bullock and Dale Bearman on The Midday Show
Published 12:46 PM ET, Monday, October 12, 2026

▶ As it aired · U.S.

Watch it as it aired: Vera Bullock and Dale Bearman on this story, from The Midday Show at 12:46 PM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are The Washington Post's, the jokes are ours.

At a glance

First reported by The Washington Post: “He reached the Americas centuries before Columbus. Why doesn’t he get more credit?”
Covered on BBN on Monday, October 12, 2026, at 12:46 PM ET on The Midday Show, by Vera Bullock and Dale Bearman.
Topics: Columbus, Americas, Washington.
BBN covered this story before: Vikings reached the Americas 500 years before Columbus (October 12).

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

The Washington PostHe reached the Americas centuries before Columbus. Why doesn’t he get more credit?

What BBN said about it

Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorThe Washington Post asks why the explorer who reached the Americas centuries before Columbus gets so little credit, and that's the Norse arrival we covered this morning, about five hundred years early.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorFive hundred years early, and Columbus still gets the mattress sale.
Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorEarly never counts.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorThen he should have posted it, Dale, with a good caption and a few hashtags.
Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorHe carved it in a rock, Vera, and nobody shared that either.

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