Sunday, October 5, 2008

Bob's Blog On The FN Website AND A Challenge To Readers

THIS was not easy to find, but I'm quite proud of myself that I did. Our favorite food television programmer has his own blog on the new slightly difficult to navigate* Food Network website.

Bob's Blog gives us some fascinating insight to what's going on at the Food Network, plus he often addresses readers' questions and concerns. Readers - the ones that could find his blog - are quite forthright in their comments. The number of people that say they no longer watch the Food Network seems to be giving them a pretty huge audience of people NOT watching.

I certainly have problems with a lot of what's on the FN, but then I remember Mario, Emeril**, Bobby, Ina, Giada, Tyler, Michael...insert your own crushes, I mean chefs, here and I realize that they're capable of producing some pretty great shows along with the dreck.

Also, as I found during his blogging about TNFNS, Bob is a darn good writer! It would be smart to give his blog a more prominent place on the site. I'm sure many folks would be interested in what he has to say, if only so they could vociferously disagree.

Maybe if he tires of his Food Network gig, Bob might think about blogging as his next career move.

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*Here's the challenge. Instead of clicking on my link for Bob's Blog, click on FoodNetwork.com and try to find his blog. Just try! Let me know what you come up with. Don't read the comments until you've given it a shot.

**Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that several great food names have moved on, but let's be honest that the FN contributed in a big way to making them famous.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

I give up. How in the world do you find Bob's Blog on the FN site. I tried and finally had to cheat and use your link. How strange.
Nancy

Sue said...

Hi Nancy,
Okay, NOONE else read this until you've tried it yourself.

To be honest, I don't think there's just one way, but I had remembered that Bob had blogged during The Next Food Network Star. I went to that page and there was a link for "Judges Sound Off". I went there and at the VERY bottom of the sidebar on THAT page was a tiny link for "Bob's Blog". Whew! That wasn't easy. I tried to get there lots of other ways to no avail.

I understand they're not trying to promote him, but shouldn't his name come up from a search on the FN home page, especially when you don't even mispell it (and even if you do).

Anonymous said...

My route to the blog wasn't too difficult: in the bottom half of the FN homepage, under the heading "Behind the Scenes", "Get news from the network's Bob Tuschman" is the second topic.

Unknown said...

I, too, tried everything I could think of, and then I gave up and googled "Bob's Blog". Lo and behold, there it was! Silly foodnetwork.com.

Sue said...

Good job! But wait a second, Bob, I mean "Anonymous", you're telling me that was there the whole time?

Seriously, Anon, I scoured that page. One problem could be that I bookmark the TV FN page, not the home page, but I definitely looked there too. Is it possible that those items change?

Sue said...

Hi Kristen,
I should have said no googling! But you're right that's it's so silly that that you can't find the dang thing easily (despite what Anon said... that's NOT easy).

Adam said...

Haha ok I give. I had no idea how to find it. Sure I could of cheated and searched, but I wanted to go down clicking. The new layout is strange, like a new haircut.

Anonymous said...

I googled too! But it's astonishing to me that Bob would take the time to read blogs, let alone write any. I doubt seriously that he's doing the writing, and it makes me think that it will become a vehicle for another point of view on FN press releases. I used to work for an enviro advocacy organization, we "wrote" op-eds for politicians and others quite a lot, so I'm always skeptical of these kinds of things.

Tom

Sue said...

Adam,
You're funny. A bad haircut can be helped with a little gel. Unfortunately that's not the case with finding your way around the new FN website.

Hi Tom,
I swear it never occurred to me that Bob didn't do his own writing. Are you telling me, as well, that Anderson Cooper isn't doing his own blogging during his newscasts?!!

I guess I felt like his writing seemed to reflect a bit of what we'd seen from him on TNFNS. The idea that some flunky is doing it is quite disconcerting.

Next you'll be saying that the Iron Chefs just phone it in and appear only minutes before filming. Quelle Horreur!

Anonymous said...

Hi Sue,

I don't have cable at home and only watch FN at the gym, so I have never seen Anderson Cooper blog (you know that if a recipe looks good even when you're blinded with sweat in your eyes and gasping for breath, it will certainly be good in the end!)

Bob's a busy man, and blog entries take a lot of time, as you know. Not that he would post them, but just writing and proofreading (even if he has someone else proofing) take time the no doubt doesn't have. This isn't to say that he doesn't occasionally think of the content himself, but I can't see him writing the entries. Sorry to disillusion you, but we already know about Iron Chef from Rob Sietsema's article in the Village Voice. As for Anderson, if you don't see him actually writing the blog entries, who knows?

Tom

Cynthia said...

As always, you are right (okay, okay, don't let the compliment go to your head) (lol). I couldn't find Bob's blog on the new FN site. I've just subscribed to his blog feed and you are right (again! so annoying) :D He does write well. I wanted to read more.

The Short (dis)Order Cook said...

Oops. I shouldn't have read the other comments. Now I know how to do it and can find Bob's blog with help. Oh well.

Anonymous said...

Bob doesn't write his own blog?? Gasp...Next we'll be learning that the food coming out of the ovens on the fn were cooked in advance.

Emily said...

I bookmarked his blog - can't wait to read it.

Sue said...

Tom,
That’s a great gym that has the Food Network on.

You’re quite right, quality blogging does take time, so he probably doesn’t sit there typing away and proofreading (which takes longer than the actual writing).

Anderson always says he’s blogging during commercials. Hah! That’s convenient…it’s probably an unpaid intern.

Cyn,
It is sooo annoying. Yeah, I think it’s a good blog, especially for those of us fixated on the Food Network.

Hi Rach,
Sorry, I should have said that. I added a note.

Hi PC,
Say it isn’t true!

Em,
You’ll enjoy it.