# $79 Trillion Worth of Income Inequality

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068/79-trillion-worth-of-income-inequality
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068/79-trillion-worth-of-income-inequality.md
Podcast: [Optimist Economy](https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068)
Published: 2026-01-27T09:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://play.prx.org/listen?ge=prx_14811_811e9c73-2b57-4c97-b8d1-bafd71b454e1&uf=https%3A%2F%2Fpublicfeeds.net%2Ff%2F14811%2Ffeed-rss.xml
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/tracking.swap.fm/track/sblTq32fyWAjsHzze2LG/dovetail.prxu.org/14811/811e9c73-2b57-4c97-b8d1-bafd71b454e1/260127_OE_S2E1_WEALTH_FINAL-Chapters.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/optimist-economy-7257068/episodes/79-trillion-worth-of-income-inequality
Duration seconds: 2955

## Resource

Our own optimist economist Kathryn Anne Edwards worked on a research project several years ago to measure income inequality. Its massive headline number has taken on a life of its own in columns, talking points, memes. We explain how Kathryn and co-author Carter Price managed to answer this question: What would have happened to Americans’ incomes if they’d grown at the same rate as the U.S. economy overall? Spoiler alert: 90% of us would be a lot better off. Read the working paper Kathryn co-wrote in 2020: Trends in Income From 1975 to 2018 and Carter Price’s update going through 2023 . Watch video clips from this episode at the Optimist Economy YouTube channel⁠⁠ . Follow us on Instagram at ⁠⁠ @optimist_economy . Follow us on TikTok at ⁠⁠ @optimist_economy . Read some stuff on our Substack . Consume leisure in an O.E. hat or shirt: https://merch.ambientinks.com/collections/optimisteconomy Support us and our tireless editors and producers by donating at https://optimisteconomy.com Send your economic questions or executive orders to optimist.economy@gmail.com

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## Transcript

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