Income inequality has been on the rise for decades. In the last 30 years, the wages of the top 1% have grown by 154%, while the bottom 90% has seen growth of only 17%. As the rungs of the economic ladder move further and further apart, conventional wisdom says that it will become much more difficult to climb them. Opportunities for upward mobility—the American dream—will disappear as the deck becomes stacked against the middle class and the poor. But others see inequality as a positive, a sign of a dynamic and robust economy that, in the end, helps everyone. And contrary to public opinion, mobility has remained stable over the past few decades. If the American dream is dying, is it the result of income inequality? Or is disparity in income a red herring where more complex issues are at play? The Debaters are Elise Gould, Edward Conard, Nick Hanauer, and Scott Winship.
The annual tradition of gathering Hollywood’s best and brightest has continued with this year’s Hollywood Issue, and Vanity Fair’s executive west coast editor Krista Smith joins to give us a look behind the scenes of the biggest photo shoot of the year.
34 Min
Jan 26, 2017
On The Gist, Matthew Dicks offers more tricks for helping Gist listeners tell better stories. You’re welcome. This class focuses on how to bring the emotions behind our experiences into how we tell our stories. Dicks is the author of Memoirs of...
29 Min
Jul 6, 2015
In this episode of BackStory, Ed, Joanne, and Brian look at the many reasons for joining the U.S. armed services.
42 Min
May 26, 2017