Everything about food, from matching food and wine to recipes, techniques and trends.

What's wrong with Food Network

Moderators: Jenise, Robin Garr, David M. Bueker

no avatar
User

Howard

Rank

Ultra geek

Posts

453

Joined

Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:57 am

Location

Chicago

What's wrong with Food Network

by Howard » Wed Oct 11, 2006 8:20 pm

Here is a link to an article by Bill Buford from the New Yorker. It really does spell out what many of us have felt. The problems at Food Network are deliberately created by the management and have resulted in the Network increasing its worth to billions of dollars. There has been a definite push to change the nature of cooking TV. Mr Buford's article eloquently documents the time-line and effects of this push.

Link is here: http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/a ... 002fa_fact
Howard
no avatar
User

Robin Garr

Rank

Forum Janitor

Posts

21609

Joined

Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:44 pm

Location

Louisville, KY

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Robin Garr » Wed Oct 11, 2006 8:31 pm

Sounds interesting, Howard ... I think I'll wait for the print edition to get here, <I>The New Yorker</I> being one of those little indulgences that I still enjoy sitting back with and reading the old-fashioned way.

If I recall correctly, though, Buford had an extended section about Food Network in <I>Heat</i> that covered very similar ground. Bet a nickel this article is borrowed^H^H^H^H updated from that.
no avatar
User

Stuart Yaniger

Rank

Stud Muffin

Posts

4348

Joined

Thu Mar 23, 2006 7:28 pm

Location

Big Sky

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Stuart Yaniger » Wed Oct 11, 2006 9:07 pm

Yeah, there's not much we haven't beaten to death here. But a niche opportunity has opened up as they've abandoned Real Cooking, broadband makes distribution no longer subject to the same gatekeepers, and the scorned 15MM viewers are no small matter. if I were you, Robin, I'd be pounding at the doors of venture capitalists with a plan to build a multimedia cooking "channel" starting with those 15MM affluent "viewers."
no avatar
User

Robin Garr

Rank

Forum Janitor

Posts

21609

Joined

Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:44 pm

Location

Louisville, KY

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Robin Garr » Wed Oct 11, 2006 10:25 pm

Stuart Yaniger wrote:ame gatekeepers, and the scorned 15MM viewers are no small matter. if I were you, Robin, I'd be pounding at the doors of venture capitalists with a plan to build a multimedia cooking "channel" starting with those 15MM affluent "viewers."


I'm terrible at stuff like that. What I need is an agent. What's yer fee? ;)
no avatar
User

Jeff Yeast

Rank

Wine geek

Posts

97

Joined

Thu Jul 13, 2006 4:12 pm

Location

Lexington, KY

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Jeff Yeast » Thu Oct 12, 2006 8:10 am

Never in our history as a species have we been so ignorant about our food.


Well that about says it all :roll: Thanks for posting the article. Food TV was my favorite channel early on, it and HGTV when they were both mostly "how to" and "why" programming. And while the personalities and sets are certainly prettier than they used to be, the shows are underdeveloped and garishly scripted. I still watch from time to time, but I often ponder that if I was a new aspiring home chef, I would still have no idea how to make that dish after watching Emeril...BAM!
no avatar
User

Jenise

Rank

FLDG Dishwasher

Posts

42509

Joined

Tue Mar 21, 2006 2:45 pm

Location

The Pacific Northest Westest

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Jenise » Thu Oct 12, 2006 12:51 pm

Robin Garr wrote:
Stuart Yaniger wrote:ame gatekeepers, and the scorned 15MM viewers are no small matter. if I were you, Robin, I'd be pounding at the doors of venture capitalists with a plan to build a multimedia cooking "channel" starting with those 15MM affluent "viewers."


I'm terrible at stuff like that. What I need is an agent. What's yer fee? ;)


I wanna be a producer! Got yer first show: Chef on Fire. Has a certain ring to it, and Joseph can be as cranky as he wants--he'll still look like an angel next to Gordon Ramsey.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
no avatar
User

ChefCarey

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by ChefCarey » Sat Oct 14, 2006 2:18 pm

Damn, how'd I miss this!

Much better title for a show then the one one of my assistants came up with a few years ago.

I had these two evening assistants for my demonstration classes. They called each other "Dick." In fact, it wasn't either of their names.

The title?

Chef with Two Dicks
no avatar
User

Carrie L.

Rank

Golfball Gourmet

Posts

2476

Joined

Thu Oct 12, 2006 8:12 am

Location

Extreme Southwest & Extreme Northeast

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Carrie L. » Sat Oct 14, 2006 4:20 pm

Howard, thanks for posting the link. Good article. I think most of us feel the same way -- that the network is now completely dumbed down to the point of being ridiculous. I enjoy a few shows--Ina's and Giada's, mainly.

Yesterday I had it on just for background noise and Sandra Dee was making something with chicken, and was wearing some ethereal white blouse with gaping butterfly sleeves that kept dragging onto the raw chicken. Yick! I found myself thinking -- a perfect example of the "form over substance" mentality that is now par for the course on the Food Network.
no avatar
User

Cynthia Wenslow

Rank

Pizza Princess

Posts

5746

Joined

Mon Mar 27, 2006 9:32 pm

Location

The Third Coast

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Cynthia Wenslow » Sat Oct 14, 2006 10:44 pm

Ewww, Carrie! Now I am even more grateful I don't own a tv.
no avatar
User

Bob Parsons Alberta

Rank

aka Doris

Posts

10773

Joined

Tue Mar 21, 2006 3:09 pm

Re: What's wrong with Food Network

by Bob Parsons Alberta » Sun Oct 15, 2006 11:35 pm

Wot, no tv. You are missing Rachael in the afternoons!!
no avatar
User

Bernard Roth

Rank

Wine guru

Posts

789

Joined

Sat Mar 25, 2006 4:31 pm

Location

Santa Barbara, CA

Re: What's right with Food Network?

by Bernard Roth » Mon Oct 16, 2006 10:17 pm

Ask the question a different way - What's right with Food Network? - and you'll get an empty thread.
Regards,
Bernard Roth
no avatar
User

Christy M.

Rank

Wine geek

Posts

30

Joined

Fri Oct 13, 2006 4:26 pm

Location

Brooklyn, NY

Re: What's right with Food Network?

by Christy M. » Wed Oct 18, 2006 2:06 pm

Bernard Roth wrote:Ask the question a different way - What's right with Food Network? - and you'll get an empty thread.


I'd put Alton Brown in the "what's right" category but would have to stop there and he definitely could improve(a little too theatrical sometimes if you ask me).

I'd much rather watch Jacques Pepin on PBS - "Ahappy Coohking!" always makes me smile, I often learn something new, and he makes something that actually looks good to eat!

I just don't get it. The Food Network is a very popular TV channel. With whom? It can't be people who really love food. They wouldn't do that to their food. Doesn't it make you feel very removed from most of how America seem's to eat?
Christy
no avatar
User

ChefCarey

Re: What's right with Food Network?

by ChefCarey » Wed Oct 18, 2006 3:35 pm

Christy M. wrote:
Bernard Roth wrote:Ask the question a different way - What's right with Food Network? - and you'll get an empty thread.


I'd put Alton Brown in the "what's right" category but would have to stop there and he definitely could improve(a little too theatrical sometimes if you ask me).

I'd much rather watch Jacques Pepin on PBS - "Ahappy Coohking!" always makes me smile, I often learn something new, and he makes something that actually looks good to eat!

I just don't get it. The Food Network is a very popular TV channel. With whom? It can't be people who really love food. They wouldn't do that to their food. Doesn't it make you feel very removed from most of how America seem's to eat?


Yes.

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: SemrushBot and 1 guest

Powered by phpBB ® | phpBB3 Style by KomiDesign