Susie Banikarim and Jessica Bennett met a decade ago in a newsroom, and have gone on to hold some of the most prestigious jobs in journalism. But they’re also pop culture obsessives and trash-TV addicts who can spend hours going down any rabbit hole. They often unravel cultural moments together, over late-night phone calls and edibles. Now you get to listen, too. Time to meet your hosts (hi!).

FOR MORE:

• Enemies of the People: Trump and the Political Press (Susie’s film) 
• Feminist Fight Club: A Survival Manual for a Sexist Workplace and This Is 18 (Jess’s books)
• Monica Lewinsky Is Back, But This Time It’s On Her Terms (NY Times)

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What did a generation of young women—and men—learn about sex and relationships when the most iconic romance on TV’s most popular soap opera “General Hospital” began with a rape? Susie and Jess unravel the story of Luke and Laura, the beloved couple from the longest running soap of all time, whose wedding was such a huge cultural moment that it drew more viewers than an actual royal wedding (twice). CW: This episode contains discussion of sexual violence.

Guests: 

• • Cindi Leive, co-founder of The Meteor, former editor-in-chief of Glamour and “General Hospital” superfan
  • Danielle Thompson, our soap opera-obsessed pal who knows A LOT about the history of soaps

FOR MORE:

• Why Are College Kids in a Lather Over TV Soap Operas? (NYTimes)
• The Complex, Contradictory History of the American Soap Opera (Jezebel)

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Do you have a piece of pop culture from your past that, looking back, makes you cringe? We sure do. Each week on IN RETROSPECT, we’ll revisit a cultural moment from the 80s and 90s that shaped us — and probably you — to try to understand what it taught us about the world, and our place in it. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.