Food Journalism Or Culinary Anthropology? Re- Evaluating Soft News and the Influence of Jeanne Voltz's Food Section in the L

American Journalism, 29:2, 66–91 Copyright © 2012, American Journalism Historians Association Food Journalism or Culinary Anthropology? Re- evaluating Soft News and the Influence of Jeanne Voltz’s Food Section in the Los Angeles Times By Kimberly Wilmot Voss Jeanne Voltz was a groundbreaking food editor at the Los Angeles Times in the 1960s— a time of great change for journalism and gender roles. This articles outlines her career path and includes an analysis of her work at the Times, including her approach to food journalism as a mix of hard news, such as food safety and consumer awareness; and soft news, including recipes, and restaurant reviews. The research illuminates the significance of food sections and lays the foundation for future research on the contributions of women to food journalism. efore the success of the Food Network and the popular- ity of competitive cooking programs such as Bravo’s BTop Chef, aspiring foodies relied on the food sections of their local newspapers for their gastronomical fix. These sections, thick with grocery store advertisements in the 1950s and 1960s, originated in the women’s pages— narrowly defined as the fashion and household pages— of metropolitan dailies across the country. A staple of mid- century metropolitan newspapers, food sections continue today. Then as now, food sections reflected gender roles, health standards, and governmental policies about food in a community. They also reflected the devel- Kimberly Wilmot Voss is oping demographic of many cities as new im- an associate professor of journalism in the Nicholson migrants settled into communities and shared School of Communication, their dishes. Lastly, these sections related sto- PO Box 161344, Orlando, ries about food— creating a form of culinary FL 32816–1344. (618)541– 4949, voss.kimberly@gmail anthropology, as Jeanne Voltz, the former Los .com Angeles Times food editor, once described her 66 • American Journalism — work.1 In her more than forty years as a journalist, Voltz became what one culinary authority described as “the best- known food ex- pert you’ve probably never heard of.” 2 Her writing encompassed a mix of the people and the dishes of the communities she covered, the news of governmental and health studies that defined a time period, and an examination of history through food. For example, Voltz once debunked the biblical tale that Eve tempted Adam with an apple. Considering the evolution of language, Voltz wrote, the tempting fruit was likely a mango, a persimmon, or an apricot.3 Food sections do not have a well- documented history beyond brief mentions of women’s pages. (The few newspaper options for women prior to the early 1970s were in the women’s pages. These sections were known for the four Fs: family, fashion, food, and fur- nishings.) Prior to the women’s liberation movement, food was the rare topic on which women could claim authority. Some of these women’s-section writers were simply cooks for their families look- ing for paid work, while just as many were college- educated re- porters who could not find jobs in the news sections.4 And a third category included graduates of home economics programs who practiced their expertise as food writers.5 Regardless of their back- grounds, they made a difference in the menus of their communities. As gender roles were changing in society, Voltz guided two of the most significant food sections in the country— at the Miami Herald in the 1950s and at the Los Angeles Times in the 1960s. This research analyzes her work at the Times during the heyday of the sections, and shows that a women’s section was laying the foundation for food journalism years well before the current surge. It also demonstrates that food journalism can tell much about a community’s ethnic growth, gender roles, and health issues at a particular time, supporting Voltz’s food anthropologist analogy. By identifying these themes found in Voltz’s reporting, this research establishes a place for Voltz and the value of the food sections in the annals of journalism history. It builds on the work of those who have examined materials like cookbooks, to better understand the lives of women who are often left out of other historical accounts.6 Dismissing the Food Section Myth For years, food sections were viewed as little more than a col- lection of casserole recipes and plugs for local grocery stores and other advertisers.7 In David Kamp’s captivating history of Ameri- can food, women’s pages are largely dismissed, although he does — Spring 2012 • 67 refer to the “Jell- O- abusing women’s- page ladies” 8 and their simple newspaper sections. But these women actually played a significant role in the story of food, and a look at the Los Angeles Times food section in the 1960s during the Voltz years shows the depth of food journalism. Voltz had a traditional reporting background and de- veloped her food skills later. Even after becoming an editor, she contributed several stories each week to her section. As this research shows, Voltz’s articles were about topics such as food safety, foreshadowing problems with food contamination that persist today, and consumer issues that might have run counter to the inter- ests of clients advertising in her section. Other articles viewed food through societal elements, coverage that went beyond recipes. That is not to dismiss the value of the recipes, however, which reflected a changing American appetite following World War II and the impact of women working outside of the home.9 Food Editors Earn Their Place Women’s pages, where the food section was usually found, were also the site of “soft news.” In these sections were fashion news and stories about weddings. Yet, these sections afforded women a certain authority. The American Press Institute’s 1951 industry publication Fashion in Newspapers observed that “No aspect of the news is further from the comprehension of the av- erage male editor than fashion.” 10 In addition, stories about child abuse, domestic violence, and pay inequity were sprinkled among the traditional content.11 Dorothy Jurney, considered the godmother of women’s page editors, encouraged other women’s page editors to add stories about political and social issues, as well as features about professional women. Jurney explained her approach in an article in a 1956 American Society of Newspaper Editors’ publication, noting that the home beat, just like the police beat, should follow traditional news values.12 A regular part of these women’s sections were food pages, whose editors wielded notable influence. According to a 1953 article in Time: “In US dailies, few staffers exert more direct influence on readers than the food editor; only the front page and the comics have a bigger readership.” 13 In 1950, the journalism industry publication Editor & Publisher reported that the number of newspaper food editors had grown from 240 to 561 in one year. The reporter noted, “Hundreds of newspapers, which in the past have paid scant attention to the subject, are realizing the reader interest and the ad- 68 • American Journalism — vertising revenue possibilities of food and are appointing qualified editors to turn out readable food pages.” 14 Whereas most of these sections appear to have run in the women’s pages, only men were quoted in the article. It was reported that the Associated Press had assigned a man, Jack Ryan, to cover the subject, although there is no record of his work in this area. According to food writer David Kamp, the premier New York food journalists of that time were Mc- Call’s editor Helen McCully, the New York Times’ Jane Nickerson, the Associated Press’ Cecily Brownstone, and the Herald Tribune’s Clementine Paddleford. The journalists regularly socialized with James Beard, a prominent American chef.15 The food industry organized meetings for food editors at which the journalists learned about new products and new techniques in food preparation. It provided the women a chance to socialize and network at a time when they were excluded from other journalism organizations. A primary reason the food editors attended the conferences, however, was to take part in the reporting contests; their newspapers regularly publicized the work of the winners. If there was any question about who was doing the food writing, con- sider that the award was named for Vesta, the mythical goddess of home and hearth. The food sections themselves were evaluated on their service to readers, journalistic writing style, use of pictures, page design, nutrition, originality, timeliness, and thoroughness.16 Awards were given in different circulation categories and black- and- white versus color pages. A newspaper professional was among the group judging the entries. For example, in 1965 the judges were William Blair of the New York Times and president of the National Press Club; Emilie Hall, with the College of Home Economics at Cornell University and whose title was listed as editor;17 and Robert Barbour, editor of Public Relations Reporter.18 Food Journalism Ethics Takes a Hit Journalism is largely guided by a separation between editorial and advertising. This separation encourages objectivity by mak- ing sure that advertisers do not influence the newspaper content. In 1971, US Sen. Frank Moss of Utah in a speech at a food editors’ meeting raised a concern over advertisers’ influence on food sections. “Too often our food pages are first- rate press agentry,” he ar- gued. Moss asked the editors, “How much of your reporting (from the conference) is hard news and how much is plugging?” Further, had the editors “ever found fault with the food industry and its — Spring 2012 • 69 product?” 19 In newspaper interviews, Moss claimed that food editors operating “in a rarified atmosphere clouded with smoke blown by industry press releases have simply lagged behind the healthy growth of responsible consumer journalism.” 20 It was at this time that the Columbia Journalism Review, an industry publication, featured an investigative article about food reporting.

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