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Both CNN and the Huffington Post announced this week that they are entering the Internet foodie realm.
"PaidContent.org reports that, according to Colin Sterling,
a long-time HuffPo staffer who is now the site's food editor, the new channel will reflect the omnivorous news coverage formula HuffPo typically employs. In other words, the Food section will be written by a lot of well-known and unknown contributors on a vast array of subjects, including recipes, profiles of star chefs and restaurateurs as well as general food industry news. "Part of what HuffPost so addictive, is that it’s a mix of high and low," said Sterling, who initially proposed the idea about three months ago. "There's media gossip and also top notch reporting. The Food vertical will emulate that model."
The channel's first week has seen an exclusive interview with The Omnivore's Dilemma author Michael Pollan, as well as posts on beer brownies and Joe Biden's cheesesteak order.
Craig "Meathead" Goldwyn, longtime blogger for the site, unveiled HuffPost Food with an engaging slideshow entitled "Food is So Much More than What's for Dinner!" In his post, Goldwyn explains the channel's rationale: "Food may be the pre-emininent topic of our times."
Evidently, CNN thinks so, too. BusinessInsider.com reports that CNN.com General Manager KC Estenson announced yesterday that the site is expanding its already huge online presence to include revamped entertainment and tech blogs and a "whole new blog network." As part of this new network, CNN will roll out a new food blog, Eatocracy, by former AOL Food and Slashfood editor, Kat Kinsman.
The popularity and importance of food content is well documented. Last summer, the Huffington Post's own Reese Schonfeld reported on the results of the July cable news ratings. July was a big news month because of the death of Michael Jackson. Still, the rating showed that The Food Network beat out all of the cable news networks -- FOX, MSNBC and CNN -- in every demographic measurement. Schonfeld said that although The Food Network was second to FOX in total viewing:
Food had 300,000 more 18-49 viewers than Fox, and 100,000 more 25-54s. The widest margin was in 18-34s -- Food beat the news nets 3-1 among those viewers. It was watched by 281,000 viewers, while each of the news nets drew about 90,000.
Schonfeld posits a theory for the popularity of food in our times:
I think Food's success reflects America's current state of mind. Perhaps the nasty negativity that has characterized the past six months of cable news coverage has sent Americans searching for something more positive; something more comforting.
Elise Bauer of SimplyRecipes.com, says our love affair with food is not new, but we do have a renewed interest in how our food impacts us and how we impact it:
Food is big. Always has been, because everybody has to eat. What's new is that food is now considered "cool." I think Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma woke people up to the realization that we have allowed something so vital to our existence, what we eat, to get away from us. We have forgotten where our food comes from, and now we want to know. So it's no surprise to me that more companies are jumping into the food content game.
To be sure, CNN and HuffPost stand to gain the increased traffic they seek by expanding into the increasingly popular food topic. The content possibilities are rich and infinite. But will these corporate blogs offer the same essence of passion and adventure that the traditional cooking-at-home food blogs offer? Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen thinks maybe not:
Most people love food and that simple reality largely explains why food blogs and other food sites keep gaining popularity. Now home cooks who wouldn't have invested lots of time or money in improving their meals see that truly great food experiences are becoming highly accessible through the internet. My personal preference will probably always be for personal food sites that capture the passion people feel about cooking in their own home kitchens, but any type of site that helps people make home-cooked meals is something I love to see.
Professional or not, anyone entering into the food blog arena has a high standard to maintain. Food bloggers are known for the quality of their sites. Well-established food bloggers have achieved an aesthetic that is highly unique and almost always beautiful and inspiring. In addition, as sorahatch expresses at SeriousEats.com:
Regardless of how you feel about food blogs,
