Reader: Enough with the food porn! Enough with the "People's Republic"!

People love looking at food. Food they might possibly make for dinner, food they'll never get close to -- like this "Altitude-high food porn from the Taste of Vail." That's why pictures of food are often labeled "porn," as in Laura Shunk's "Food Porn: Pizzeria Basta" post that accompanied her...

By Patricia Calhoun

April 12, 2011

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People love looking at food. Food they might possibly make for dinner, food they'll never get close to -- like this "Altitude-high food porn from the Taste of Vail." That's why pictures of food are often labeled "porn," as in Laura Shunk's "Food Porn: Pizzeria Basta" post that accompanied her recent review of Pizzeria Basta.

But the term "food porn" alone was enough to get WFK all hot and bothered:

Please, please please!!!! STOP using the term "food porn"... it is soo soo lame, played out and not even a little edgy. Yes, the pictures are rad, and it all looks beyond delicious, but that "trendy" phrase needs to be shut down. Please tell the rest of the Westword staff also. Thank you.

And WFK wasn't done. He returned to the Pizzeria Basta porn to post again:

Also, with even more emphasis, stop using the term "Peoples Republic" to refer to my hometown. It is amateurish and you come off like a knuckle dragging Aurora neo conservative. Please stop it!

So, should we stop using the term "food porn"? Should we stop referring to Boulder as the "People's Republic"?

Should we stop eating in Boulder at all? Readers are still complaining about staff writer Joel Warner taking a toddler to a Boulder restaurant. (Those who aren't complaining about him taking his toddler out at all, that is.) And after the review of Pizzeria Basta, a reader complained about Shunk's choice:

Sweet, another review of a Boulder restaurant, thanks Laura. This is the "Denver" Westword right?

For the record, we also feature Centennial and Golden and Aurora restaurants in the Best of Denver -- and we draw from the entire metro area when choosing places to review.

Still, too much Boulder? Too much porn? Discuss below.

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Patricia Calhoun is editor-in-chief of Westword, the alt-weekly she co-founded in September 1977. She’s been inducted into the Colorado Press Association Hall of Fame, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia Hall of Fame and the Colorado Restaurant Association Hall of Fame. She’s also received dozens of local, state and national awards for writing, including first place for feature writing and first place for column writing with the Society of Professional Journalists. Patricia is a weekly commentator on Colorado Inside Out, PBS 12's public affairs roundtable, which has won two Emmys.

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