Pop Culture and Pay Equity: Season Three of Level the Paying Field to Explore Pervasive Pay Gaps

TORONTO, May 7, 2025 /CNW/ - Gendered representations and characterizations abound in pop culture. From television, music, sports, video games, and art, women are both the creators and consumers of pop culture. A third season of Level the Paying Field reveals that both the stories that are told and the production behind them are not always gender equitable. 

Building upon the success of seasons one and two of the award-winning podcast, Level the Paying Field, season three explores topics related to economics, equity, women, work and wage equity. This season, the Ontario Pay Equity Office convenes leading experts and content creators to reveal hidden biases in both pop culture narratives and the gender pay gap for content creators. 

"Gender bias is pervasive in so many aspects of our society," says Kadie Philp, Commissioner and CAO of the Pay Equity Office. "Especially in television, music and pop cultural content where we may not notice how the bias presented on screen, in video games, or on gallery walls creates and reinforces harmful gender stereotypes." 

Through the series, Ontario's Pay Equity Office seeks to highlight how looking critically at the pop culture products we consume and participate in may help us see and correct the gender-based biases that contribute to creating and justifying gender pay gaps. 

"We want listeners to think critically about how the media they are consuming in various pop culture platforms may be promoting gender inequalities. Each of our guests is either an expert researcher or a cultural content creator who gives us a behind-the-scenes look at gender bias in production and content," says Philp.

Join the Pay Equity Office in elevating the equity conversation to make the world a more equitable place for women to work, live and thrive, and support closing the gender wage gap.

Watch episodes of Level the Paying Field at www.levelthepayingfield.ca or listen wherever you download your podcasts.

Quick Facts:

• Level the Paying Field is a six-part video and podcast series covering topics related to economics, equity, women, work, and money, with a focus on the gender wage gap (GWG).
• In 2022, the podcast was recognized with a Gold Quill Award of Merit from the International Association of Business Communicators.
• Level the Paying Field ranked in the top 100 podcasts in the Careers category in Canada.
• The gender wage gap (GWG) is the difference between wages earned by men and wages earned by women. There are different ways to measure the GWG.
• In Ontario, the GWG, calculated based on average hourly wages, is 13%. This means that for every $1.00 earned by a male worker, a female worker earns 87 cents. Calculated using average annual salary earnings, the GWG is 25%, or 75 cents on the dollar. 

What You'll Hear This Season:

• How television evolved from housewife sitcoms to feminist storylines—and what Lucille Ball and Shonda Rhimes have in common when it comes to shaping narratives.
• A look into the music industry, from the blues women of the 1920s to Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, tracing how women have used music to resist, reclaim, and revolutionize.
• Olympian Haley Daniels discusses her fight to gain recognition for women's canoeing, illustrating how policy, passion, and persistence intersect when women demand equal footing in sports and equal pay.
• Although nearly half of all gamers are women, only 23% of game developers are female. We unpack how gender gaps persist in gaming—and how women are changing that from the inside out.
• Dive into the world of fine art, motherhood, and activism through photography with Alexa Mazzarello, exploring how gender bias and care work impact the creative careers and income potential of women artists.

Season 3 proves that culture isn't soft power—it's real power. And if we want pay equity, we need to Level the Paying Field everywhere—on the screen, behind the scenes, in the arena, and in the systems we use to value work.

Listen Now                                                                                                        
Level the Paying Field is available at www.levelthepayingfield.ca, on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you download your podcasts. 

About the Pay Equity Office
The Pay Equity Office works to close the gender wage gap in Ontario. Through education, outreach, and enforcement, the Office promotes fair pay practices and supports inclusive workplaces.

SOURCE Pay Equity Office

For Media Inquiries: To schedule an interview with Commissioner Kadie Philp, please contact: Sara Paesano, Executive Assistant to the Director and Commissioner: [email protected], 416-305-9350