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Is there a cultural moment from your past that looks different in retrospect? Maybe it’s a scandalous tabloid story seared into your teenage brain or a political punchline that just feels wrong now. It might be a very specific red swimsuit that inspired a decade of plastic surgery (see: “Baywatch”) or the inescapable smell of an entire generation of prepubescent boys (Axe body spray, anyone?). Each week on IN RETROSPECT, Emmy-winning journalist Susie Banikarim and New York Times editor Jessica Bennett revisit a pop culture moment from the 80s and 90s that shaped them — to try to understand what it taught us about the world, and a woman’s place in it.


Talk to us at @inretropod, @susiebnyc and @jessicabennett on Instagram. New episodes each Friday.


In Retrospect with Susie Banikarim and Jessica Bennett

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.

Introducing: In Retrospect

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)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Soap Opera Romance That Started With An Assault

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)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Meet Your Hosts (Hi!)

When lifeguard CJ Parker, played by Pamela Anderson, ran in slow-mo down a sandy California beach in her iconic cherry red swimsuit — you know the one, low in the front, hiiiiiigh on the sides — she didn’t just turn “Baywatch” into the number-one TV show in America, she became the enduring symbol of 90s sexuality. In this episode, Jess and Susie trace that swimsuit’s surprising history — and its ripple effects.
 
Guests:
 
 • Pamela Anderson, actor, activist and author 
 • Susan Douglas, professor of media studies at the University of Michigan and author of “
Enlightened Sexism • ”
 
FOR MORE:
 
 Pamela Anderson Doesn’t Need Your Redemption. She’s Just Fine. • (NY Times)
 How Baywatch Went from Early Belly Flop to the Big Screen • (NY Times)
 Pamela: A Love Story • (Netflix)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pamela Anderson & That Iconic Red Swimsuit

In 1988, Oprah Winfrey revealed on her hugely popular talk show that she’d shed 67 pounds, which she illustrated to her audience by wheeling out a little red wagon full of exactly that much animal fat. That show, the highest-rated of her 25-year run, would kickstart a cycle of speculation about this wildly successful woman’s body that would endure for decades. In this episode, Susie and Jess explore why Oprah’s weight struggles have been the subject of so much fascination, her recent special that touches on that scrutiny, the rise of Ozempic and the pressure women feel to be perfect.
 
FOR MORE:
 
 Oprah Daily’s The State of Weight Special • (Oprah Daily)
 Making Oprah podcast • (WBEZ)
 From the Archives: Oprah Winfrey Cover Story • (Vogue)
 Losing It in the Anti-Dieting Age • (New York Times Magazine)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oprah’s Little Red Wagon

It’s “problematic.” In this mini episode, Jess rants about her dislike of this overly simplistic label (used to describe everything from people to paint colors), and Susie asks her why, if that’s the case, she can’t seem to stop using it.
 
FOR MORE:
 
 If Everything Is ‘Trauma,’ Is Anything? • (NY Times)
 I Was Wrong About Trigger Warnings • (The Atlantic) 
 What If Calling People Out, We Called Them In? • (NY Times)
 The Problem With the Word 'Problematic’ • (The Atlantic)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Word We Won’t Use on This Show

It was 1998 and teenage Jessica was crammed onto the couch in the basement of a friend’s house in Seattle, swooning over the hot-and-heavy “love affair” between Pacey and Tamara on “Dawson’s Creek.” The only thing: Pacey was 15, and Tamara – aka Miss Jacobs – was his 38-year-old high school English teacher. Ew?
 
Guests:
 
 • Rosie Bancroft, Jess’s middle school pal and current middle school mental health counselor
 
FOR MORE:
 
 ‘Dawson’s Creek’ at 20: Inside the Teen Drama’s Deepest Secrets • (Hollywood Reporter)
 Dawson’s Creek and That Troubling Storyline • (Medium)
 ‘In Retrospect’ – The Playlist • (Aren’t you dying to hear the Dawson’s theme song?) (Spotify)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hot for Teacher (Pt 1): Dawson’s Creek’s Weird ‘Romance’

So Pacey lost his virginity to his high school English teacher. But what do we… call that? Was it a tryst? An affair? An assault? Jess & Susie dive into the linguistic acrobatics of how America talked about statutory rape in the 90s – and delve into the the true story that was playing out at the time, that of Seattle teacher (and convicted rapist) Mary Kay Letourneau.
 
Guests:
 
 • Rosie Bancroft, Jess’s middle school pal and current middle school mental health counselor
 
FOR MORE:
 
 How the Media Turned Child Rape Into a ‘Tryst’ • (Rolling Stone)
 America’s confused obsession with Mary Kay Letourneau • (Washington Post)
 ‘In Retrospect’ – The Playlist • (Aren’t you dying to hear the Dawson’s theme song?) (Spotify)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hot for Teacher (Pt 2): Mary Kay Letourneau Enters the Chat

Can you understand U.S. cultural history without understanding Axe Body Spray? Listener, you cannot. In this mini-episode, Jess and Susie trace the scent that infiltrated school hallways and telegraphed wannabe masculinity for a generation of Y2K kids. Featuring a special appearance by Jess’s husband.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Smells Like Teen Puberty

The princess of pop's much anticipated memoir, “The Woman In Me,” is finally out. This week, Jess and Susie speed-read it and share their thoughts on the woman whose life is perhaps the ultimate case of "in retrospect."

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Book of Britney Spears

A recent Republican debate stirred up an age-old discussion about high heels: Who is allowed to wear them, how high they can be, and what they can tell us about gender politics in 2023. In this episode, Jess & Susie unravel the long history of high-heeled shoes (originally designed for men!) and how they’ve been used as a political insult and weapon.
 
FOR MORE:
 
 Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, and Those Stilettos • (Jessica Bennett, The New York Times)
 Penis Politics, a podcast from The Waves • (Slate)
 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Secret Politics of High Heels

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