The media loves to talk about the gender wage gap and construct a narrative that women in America are oppressed and discriminated against in the workplace.

In reality, the gender wage gap is more accurately described as a gender earnings gap. It is mostly caused by the career choices men and women make on aggregate. The statistics showing women earn less than men on average are not comparing apples to apples. When that is done, controlling for field, type of work and hours, the gap virtually disappears (or, in some cases, flips in favor of women’s earnings). And the remaining gap can’t be conclusively linked to discrimination.