#Instashoot more than you can chew an ethnographic approach to foodtography on Instagram
Research proposal
Ethnographic approaches to social media 2013-2014
05-05-2014
Myrna Pruijn, 629522
1. Introduction
The expression ‘Tweet before you eat’ has entered common diction in 2013. It is an unsolicited truth that many people now celebrate a top notch restaurant meal or a culinary achievement not by immediately diving in - but by a photo session. People seem to think that a plate of beautifully prepared food is no good unless it has been shared with their friends. 52% of the people take photos with their mobile devices at least once a month; another 19% upload those pictures to the web (Grinter et al., 2002; Wasserman, 2011). Enough of these pictures contain "foodtography" to upkeep the website Foodspotting (Wasserman, 2011). This trend is further fueled by Photoblogging apps like Instagram and the photo-enabled version of Foursquare. Recently several new apps have even been invented which only focus on pictures of food, e.g. Feedie and Instafood.
Even though food photography is tremendously popular, it might have negative effects. Firstly, taking photographs of a meal in public might disturb other people and some people even let the food go to waste as it takes them too long to find the right angle for their picture. For this reason, several restaurants – e.g. the SoHo House New York - have banned the taking of photographs (Stapinski, 2013). On top of this, research has demonstrated that seeing pictures of food results in decreased enjoyment of foods that have a comparable taste characteristic (Larson, Redden, & Elder, 2013). The over-exposure to food pictures increases people’s satiation, or the decreasing enjoyme...
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In his essay “The Eco-Gastronomic Mirror: Narcissism and Death at the Dinner Table” Jordan Shapiro explores the psychological aspects of the human relationship with food. He comments on the ways in which the imperfections in the food are masked in the kitchen. The author reiterates his experience at the hands of older male chefs and the things he saw and felt while training in the kitchen. He endeavors to debunk the myth that cooking in a large kitchen is anything but noisy and infernal, as portrayed by movies such as “Ratatouille (2007)”.
A common theme in entertainment today is the question “Just because I can, should I do it?” Usually this is applied to moral issues or controversial scientific breakthroughs. Yet, very little of the American public even bother to ask this about food science and production. As long as the food tastes good and is convenient, most people don’t really care. Melanie Warner, overall, was just like most Americans. In her book she documents how a former business journalist became infatuated with the longevity of cheese, guacamole, and other normal American cuisine. It’s a dark hole. Most readers will be horrified and confused with such production methods. While Warner’s book isn’t a scientific study, her neutral style and intriguing investigation
In February 2010, a remarkable chef and speaker, Jamie Oliver, presented himself to a TED (Technology, Education, Design) audience as ruthlessly real and charismatic. In his speech, “Teach Every Child about Food” he shares powerful stories of his anti-obesity project and makes the case for an all-out assault on our ignorance of food. Jaime Oliver’s speech aims to alter the perspective of Americans and their decisions about food and its effects. Since then, Oliver’s TED talk has been viewed across the nation and brought a reality to the issue with food education. Jamie Oliver successfully utilizes ethos, logos, and pathos to portray his belief that without the use of food education, America and its children will fall under the weight of its own obesity.
What stood out to me in this video is the alarmingly growing rate of obesity and diabetes in the United States. Obesity and Diabetes Type II are both diseases that a person can easily avoid by becoming more aware of what he or she is consuming on a regular basis. In the video, one of Dr. Esselstyn’s patients, San’Dera Nation, who used a plant-based diet to reverse her diabetes and hypertension said “…do not live to eat, but eat to live”. This statement helped clarify the thought that many people eat for reasons other than health. For example, holidays are a huge time for socializing and, with that socializing, a huge emphasis is placed on food and drink. Not only are social gatherings a time that food is of importance, but, generally, as a matter of lifestyle, many people eat food as a means to feel happy. People enjoy the taste of food (particularly food that is ...
For millions, fast food restaurants are the source of positive associations with birthday parties, play dates and accessible comfort food. For others, they represent a lifeline meal on a busy day, or the secret to quieting a cranky toddler on a long trip because hurrying residents of cities have no time to cook a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner. Fast food presents even in the lives of people who are trying
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Mcdonalds admits their fried foods in particular are not very nutritious, but people tend to overlook that because they believe it is too much to read. Is the restaurant really the one to blame when they visibly reveal the nutritional value of all their food? Instead of accepting the blame for their bad choices, people find ways to overlook their personal responsibilities in making good food choices. Everyday twenty-five percent of Americans eat at fast food restaurants; therefore, it appears that self-discipline is the culprit that lacks in the United States (Hernandez).
Food is the essential vitality of life and the essence of survival. It nourishes one’s physical body to enable pursuit of passion. However, in overwhelming aspects of American society, food is viewed as an enemy. It is seen as the root cause of obesity which carries heavy condemnations of ugliness and weakness. Countless people have become obsessed with food as a means of exerting strength, displaying will-power, and achieving alleged beauty. The way society views nutrition has become misconstrued and disordered, resulting in unhealthy relationships with food, and thus emotional and physical harm. The most effective way to change society’s relationship with food is to target the presentation, practices, content, and intentions of nutrition
In assignment five, the multimedia memoir, I tell a story spanning the course of approximately 2 years, taking my audience (everyone from picky eaters to thrill seeking “cuisinests”) on a journey through how I became a “foodie”. This voyage is presented through a website format (http://afoodiesodyssey.weebly.com/) with various multimedia elements, allowing me to use different rhetorical strategies for different scenarios. Through social media, animations, video, pictures, and text I am able to convey my memoir and present a valuable lesson to my viewers of my website. The foundation of my memoir is captured by the social media app, Instagram, for it provides a pictorial representation of my journey of transforming from a picky eater to a foodie.
Food is a major part of everyone’s everyday life. It’s hard to imagine life without the chocolate cake on your fingers or a carne asada taco in your mouth. Enjoying delicious desserts and fast food seem extremely magnificent to eat and spend money buying them. Although, there have been many controversies in the United States on how it’s the largest country with the most obesity regarding children, which affects their health, many people are still going throughout their day snacking. Many people in America are having full course meals with thousands of calories in one sitting not knowing the short term or long term side effects that are going to take a huge toll on their lives. Food is delicious, but it comes with a secret behind the savoriness/sweetness.
This is a significant amount of people that are cooking meals that tend to be higher in calories, fat, and served in unhealthy portions. Besides questioning the health effects of cooking television shows, there is also the discussion that the food industry is not being portrayed correctly. Christina Tosi, chef at Momofuku Milk Bar in New York, was asked about her feelings about cooking television shows. She summed it up by saying “If I had to answer, I’d say food TV portrays more of who we are as TV watchers and less of who we are as people of the food industry.”
The second goal that consumers attempt to balance when deciding what and where to eat is eating pleasure. Many of the advertisements on television are aimed at making the fast food appealing to the eye and stomach. Pictures of the product and the satisfied consumer demonstrate the enjoyment found in eating. Also, consumers eat to satisfy their craving for a particular food. This is why the publ...
It is far more flattering and interesting to say the best place to eat is at five star expensive restaurants with a stunning view, but is that actually the best place to physically consume food? Is this attractive place actually making one enjoy their food more? Is it not logical to think a great place to eat is a place where most people actually eat daily? In the comfort of one’s home, more specifically in the comfort of one’s on bed has shown to be a place where people feel comfortable eating. Despite society labeling it as laziness, the action of being able eat lying down in bed with entertainment is appealing to individuals wanting relaxation because of the comfortable physical sedentary position compared to eating while standing, and
Technology has been and will continue to be an essential part of human life. Information technology is a revolution that has taken the whole world captive. Everyone around the globe is trying either to conform or catch up with the ever changing and improving technologies without having a second thought of its impact on their lives. The internet is the ground-breaking invention of the twenty first century, leading to the mushrooming of the social media and other communication platforms. The best invention that has captured my interest is the instagram. Its effect and how it has positively impacted on the lives of people, especially the youth cannot be underestimated. Instagram is improving the quality life. It has unlocked our creativity, enhanced connection and led to faster access to information. Comparing the past with the present, we can argue that information technology has done more good than harm and even as we progress into the future, we ought to adopt better technology because what we currently have may not be good enough.