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The ferocity of attacks on Ann Bauer surprises me. She's a writer who took a job to pay the bills, got burnt out on it, and is telling us about the experience in a funny, nicely paced article that provides an outsider's perspective on what is, in many respects, a silly little world. That's all that's going on here, yet some letter writers are responding as though she has betrayed the craft.
Remember the publication she was writing for. Every major city has one or two. They indeed feature food on every other cover: Best Cheap Eats! Top Ten! Best New Restaurants! Fast-Rising Chefs! What's inside aren't even articles. Instead, it's all photos, lists, bullets, and sidebars ("Where Local Anchors Like to Eat!"). Half the time the content is heavily influenced by the writers' and editors' personal connections to various restaurateurs and other advertisers. Ever wonder why your favorite restaurant doesn't make your city magazine's Top 50 list? Probably because it doesn't advertise in the publication.
All you have to do is leaf through this kind of magazine to know that they provide a less than hospitable environment even for dedicated, passionate, professional food writers. Food porn is exactly what these publications are peddling. Bauer couldn't sustain her jones for it. Does that turn her into a ranting bitch?
By the way, it would be nice if her detractors at least acknowledged the article's readability. Whether or not they like Bauer, they certainly seem to have devoured her writing.
