Food Porn
Even with all of the knowledge that we possess about diet, exercise, heart health, and blah, blah, blah, the food we consume has little to do with our intellect, and a lot to do with our senses. This is why a channel like the Food Network can just show a burger being grilled, with cheese melting down the sides; the chef sliding that burger onto a bun with fries on the side, shaking some salt onto those crispy, slightly brown potatoes, serve up the whole thing right into the big screen of your living room, and you’ll watch. You might not be able to have that burger right then, but I can tell you this: the advertiser that buys time on that show would be smart to sell burgers! They might get someone to run to McDonalds’ or Burger King after the show. And the viewers might buy the products that were placed: whether it might be the ketchup, seasonings, or they might even have “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner.”
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by the Caveat Queen
Sitting slack-jawed, drooling, and motionless on the
couch last weekend, I sat staring at the television as the hours passed. I was jealously watching the host of each
show enjoy luscious dishes that I could only dream of encountering. At one point, I actually groaned as the host
described a dish that he was preparing to enjoy. That’s when it hit me. These shows had crossed the line, or I
had. Someone certainly had, as these
oversized sandwiches, their contents temptingly spilling onto the plate and
practically into my living room, desserts whose chocolate nearly melted right
into my mouth, and sauces whose ingredients only needed to be mentioned to make
me want to climb right through the TV into the kitchens that I was voyeuristically
watching: I wasn’t watching cooking shows!
These were food porn!
As the “Ace of
Cakes” had shown me, even cakes can be pumped up with silicone (ok, maybe it’s
Styrofoam). But thing is, even a simple
cake needs a little help now and then to look her best! I couldn’t believe it the first time I saw
what they call a “cake form”. If cakes
need this kind of help, it’s no surprise I can’t keep my own layers from
sagging.
It’s any wonder we are so obsessed with food, when
we are bombarded with images of it, and not only that, but it is made up to
look so darn pretty. I actually watched
a show about how food artists do their jobs.
Basically, it’s make-up for food.
Most of the food we see in ads, magazine photo spreads, and TV ads is
phony, just like those cakes that are decorated up so nicely. Orange juice has soap bubbles to make it look
fresh, meat is seared on the outside and left raw in the middle so it will run
with the right amount of juices, ice cream is actually mashed potatoes, so it
won’t melt under the lights. The list
goes on and on, of faked-up, maked-up food stuffs. And you thought it took a lot to make
Angelina Jolie’s lips look good in the movies!
(Or did you really think she rolled out of bed looking like that? I prefer to think that she needs a few soap
bubbles and is made out of mashed potatoes, myself.)
Even with all of the knowledge that we possess about diet, exercise, heart health, and blah, blah, blah, the food we consume has little to do with our intellect, and a lot to do with our senses. This is why a channel like the Food Network can just show a burger being grilled, with cheese melting down the sides; the chef sliding that burger onto a bun with fries on the side, shaking some salt onto those crispy, slightly brown potatoes, serve up the whole thing right into the big screen of your living room, and you’ll watch. You might not be able to have that burger right then, but I can tell you this: the advertiser that buys time on that show would be smart to sell burgers! They might get someone to run to McDonalds’ or Burger King after the show. And the viewers might buy the products that were placed: whether it might be the ketchup, seasonings, or they might even have “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner.”
This
“food porn” is in magazines (what publication doesn’t have a recipe section
anymore? Popular Mechanics, maybe?), the
morning news programs (since when was food news, but just ask “Good Morning
America” and they’ll tell you it is), and certainly it’s all over the Internet,
right next to sex in popularity.
Recipes, diets, allergies, if you have an interest or a need, there is a
website, a blog, and an e-community for you.
There
is a difference, obviously, between the selling of food, and the pornography of
food. Just as there is between a
romantic comedy and a porno. Groceries
must be sold; a recipe exchanged, and there has to be advertising, as
well. But, I guess it goes from the
sublime to the ridiculous when I am watching a show where someone is slicing a
16-inch thick sandwich, which is practically pornographic in and of itself, and
the host of the show is moaning and groaning over it and begging to try a bite,
does so, and then tells us all how great it is, before he moves on to the next
item on the menu. No recipe, no
information, just us, the audience, watching him eat. It has no socially redeeming value, really,
which is the definition of pornography.
And when, my friends, did we become people who felt this way about
food? Ok, well apparently I did last
weekend. Scary.
OMB!! This woman never gets old! I love you Caveat Queen. I laugh so hard every time!! Thanks so much
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