The proliferation of niche cable programming in the U.S. post-network era includes a meteoric rise in food television. Indicative of this move toward an increase in food-related programming is the recent unveiling of the cable offering Cooking Channel. Creators behind Cooking Channel have worked to establish a distinct brand, describing the channel as a place for “food people” who are authentically and passionately “interested in upping their food IQ” (Scripps). The discourse surrounding the Cooking Channel launch is further complicated by the fact that men have an ostensibly larger presence on the channel. Men are featured in promotional spots, press releases, and on programs that take viewers on quests to increase their cultural food capital. This project works to unravel the gendered discourses surrounding the U.S. launch of Cooking Channel, asserting that the discursive site of the foodie is leveraged in an attempt to construct a foodie identity via gendered social distinction processes. The project initially analyzes the paratextual dialogue produced by mainstream press in order to highlight the negotiation among voices charged with creating the channel’s brand. The press – spearheaded by Cooking Channel parent Scripps Networks Interactive – provides an introduction to the channel that invokes consumption of new foodie content and a streamlined branding process that is divided along historically gendered binaries. The project then considers the ideological structures that underpin Cooking Channel’s programming and reinforce its identity as steeped in the pervasiveness of perpetual normative gender ideology. In turn, the final portion of the project uproots normative and hegemonic ideals with its focus on gender liminality, considering Cooking Channel as a conflicted site of negotiation that reflects shifting discourses of masculinity and femininity. These analyses merge to form a compelling look at how gender is situated in Cooking Channel’s construction of a niche cable brand. / text

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Purpose: The purpose of this essay has been to investigate how two male chefs: Per Morberg and Gustav Johansson, use cooking as an expression of their masculinity with a focus on how masculinity is portrayed in relation to meat-based and vegan diets. Research questions: – How do Morberg and Johansson present their masculinity in relation to the food that is cooked? In the form of cuisine, words and body language. – What underlying power structures in masculinity do the cooking shows express? – What possible similarities and differences are there in the representation of masculinity in each cooking show based on Morberg's and Johansson's ways of cooking? Theories: (1) The implicit author (Gripsrud, 2011), (2) Butler’s (1997) performativity theory, (3) Connell's (2008) masculinity theory and (4) Adam's (1990) theory of the sexual politics of meat and the absent referent. Method: A total of ten episodes of two different cooking shows were studied: ”Vad blir det för mat?” and ”Vegansk husmanskost”. The material was conducted using Norman Fairclough’s (1995) model named critical discourse analysis. Conclusion: Morberg’s gender creation is often an expression of what in the western culture is perceived as hegemonic masculinity, where elements such as size, strength and violence, often related to meat, are common. He cooks with a theatrical enthusiast. He is loud, sweaty and chaotic, the expressions exude macho character. These expressions are brought to life in connection with his cooking – especially to meat. In the show, the receiver quickly learn that he cares about hunting, quality products and slaughtering the animals himself, which he then cooks. He peels potatoes with a high-pressure washer, slaps dead animals on the buttocks and makes sexist jokes. His way of communicating his masculinity is related to society’s ideal of masculinity.  With his cooking show, Johansson wants to inspire people to cook without meat. Here one realizes that he clearly distances himself from the traditional discourse around plant-based. He wants to get people to reduce their meat consumption by normalizing the vegan diet, but he hides the dishes in a meat context. It can be interpreted as Johansson wanting to carry out a new form of vegan practice that is intended for more than just vegans. He shows this by cooking plant-based food that supports the concept ”meat is masculine”. He does not want to be associated with the traditional view society has of plant-based foods that are associated with feminist practice. He wants to create legitimacy among the meat norm by cooking plant-based food that looks like traditional home cooking with the taste and texture of meat.