Food Blogger Controversy: A Follow-up

We recently took notice of a blog on the IACP site attacking food bloggers, (see our blog, Should amateur food bloggers be paid to develop recipes?) and the web has energetically picked up the argument. We wanted to follow up with a couple of items.

First, the IACP has weighed in now with their entry, A Brief Bit of Context for Faking It,  and shifted the comments to this new posting. The IACP’s bottom line? “Good writing is good writing, whether it appears in a magazine or a blog, and whether you get a paycheck for it from someone else or not. Same thing with other areas of the culinary field.”

In addition, the author of the original blog, Any Reiley, has contributed more in this comment section, as has the moderator (Casey Benedict) of the original panel in which the subject was raised, and numerous other people. It is obvious that this attack has touched a nerve and raised some interesting issues — not the least of which is that we’re dealing with a whole new paradigm. As Benedict states, “While it’s natural (though perhaps a bit lazy) to want to lump food bloggers into categories that already exist and feel comfortable to us (journalists, food writers, recipe developers, etc.), that doesn’t create an accurate picture.”

It’s becoming a fascinating read addressing a question that will become ever more pertinent. As if to drive that point home, we note that today on Ree Drummond’s site (The Pioneer Woman) she has posted a blog whose sole purpose is to advertise a new Land o’ Lakes butter product, which she fully discloses, “Disclosure: I’ve partnered with Land O’Lakes for an exclusive endorsement of new LAND O LAKES® Butter with Olive Oil & Sea Salt. This blog post is sponsored by Land O’Lakes.” While Drummond, with two published cookbooks and a television show, is now a professional, she began as an at-home food blogger – the group under discussion for improperly being paid.