On The Gist, do we really have to give up plastic straws?

Then, and more seriously: a look back on a recent episode.

On Wednesday, The Gist ran an interview with Allison Yarrow about 90s Bitch, her book about sexism in the age of 24-7 news coverage. And in the Spiel, Mike offered a rebuttal of sorts with statistics on the plight of women in the ’80s versus the ’90s. It improved, didn’t it? A shrinking gender wage gap! Less domestic violence! Greater representation in the Senate! But some listeners said that wasn’t the point, and took issue with the episode. Christina Cauterucci, June Thomas, and Veralyn Williams of the Waves (Slate’s podcast on gender and feminism) join Mike to discuss the episode, the reactions, and the lessons learned.

This episode of The Gist is brought to you by Masterclass. For a great way to learn about interesting topics taught by masters in their fields like Malcom Gladwell on interviews or Ron Howard on collaboration, visit masterclass.com/gist for a 7 day free trail. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices