00:00 The hosts discuss the history of malls, starting with the first shopping center in ancient Rome and the oldest continually operated outdoor market in Istanbul.

06:31 The history of malls dates back to ancient times, with market towns and commercial districts serving as centralized locations for shopping, and in the 20th century, department stores like Marshall Field and Company and J.L. Hudson's became popular before the first enclosed shopping center, the Westminster Arcade, was built in 1828 in Providence, Rhode Island.

12:17 The first enclosed shopping center, the Westminster Arcade, was built in 1828 in Providence, Rhode Island, and malls have jails, which are small dark rooms with no windows and a chair and a camera in it that you're not allowed to leave.

17:41 Victor Gruen, a self-taught architect, invented the concept of the mall by stacking stores on top of each other and adding escalators, low balconies, and other features that are now taken for granted.

23:28 The golden age of the mall in America was between 1956 and 2005, with possibly 1500-3000 malls being built during that time, and the mall was a central part of American culture, teaching people how to fit in, be consumers, and be American.

29:25 Mentioning their personal experiences, the hosts discuss various stores and attractions that were popular in malls during their childhoods, including Chick-fil-A, Spencer Gifts, Victoria's Secret, and arcade games.

35:07 Malls started to grow in popularity and size, with notable examples being the West Edmonton Mall in Canada and the Mall of America in Minnesota, and mall walking became a popular activity due to the amenities and level surfaces provided.

41:23 Mall walkers are a special group of elderly people who are given swipe cards to track their walking and exercise at the Mall of America, and they even have monthly breakfast meetings with health experts; the mall initially didn't allow mall walkers, but eventually opened the mall early for them to walk around before the stores opened.

46:45 The Gruen transfer, or Gruen effect, is when shoppers become distracted and lose their purposeful shopping intentions while walking through a mall, leading them to shop more generally; malls use various tactics, such as music and comfortable seating areas, to keep people in the mall and encourage them to shop.

52:23 The designer of malls, Victor Gruen, originally wanted malls to be a place for people to espouse their views, but the Supreme Court ruled that malls are private property and not a place for picketing or free speech.

58:22 Malls have been in decline since the 1990s, with the Great Recession and the rise of online retailers like Amazon being major factors in their demise.

01:04:37 Malls were built for tax breaks, not to fulfill consumer demand, which is why they were destined to decline once the tax breaks went away.

01:10:24 Malls are seen as outposts of consumerism and the death of the mall represents the potential for rebuilding in a new and better way where the most important part of civic life isn't centered around shopping.