For Immediate Release                                                                                   
Contact: Kristin Tutino, WXXI, (585) 258-0253

PBS FOOD SITE UNITES THE BEST RECIPES, VIDEOS, AND CHEFS FROM WXXI AND PUBLIC TELEVISION STATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY AT PBS.ORG/FOOD

(Rochester, New York) October 18, 2011 – PBS and WXXI announced today its launch of the new PBS FOOD website at PBS.org/Food/, offering users the ability to easily search for the best of public television’s local and national food content in one place.  From national programs like Everyday Food and Made in Spain to a selection of the best local food shows like WXXI’s New York Wine and Table, as well as recipes and blogs from across the country, PBS FOOD now offers users a comprehensive directory of more than 150 food and cooking programs from the PBS airwaves.
PBS FOOD connects viewers throughout America to a community of sharable online resources that inspire, unite and celebrate food lovers. Bringing together a few simple ingredients to create a robust foodie experience, users can now find more than 1,700 searchable PBS recipes from both local stations and national archives with great ease, searchable by course, cuisine type and theme or by one of the many special occasions that make food important in life. With additional recipes from an array of well-known chefs from PBS.org such as Julia Child and local favorites like WXXI’s New York Wine and Table, the site also features classic episodes of Baking with Julia, videos from PBS favorites like Victory Garden, and even an appearance from a very young Emeril Lagasse. 

During the summer, PBS launched the Fresh Tastes Blog, introducing food bloggers Marc Matsumoto and Jenna Weber, who lead an interactive celebration of food and cooking. Each week on PBS FOOD, Marc and Jenna share new recipes and stories about their love of food and travel, and their inspirations for new recipe creations. The site will also profile careers in the food industry in the feature Kitchen Careers, with profiles of culinary professionals working as food stylists, food critics and urban farmers, to name a few. 

Additionally, the site will host a selection of the best local PBS FOOD blogs and websites from across the country, including Bay Area Bites, Check! Please Chicago, and Kitchen Explorers. The site will continue to expand to include the local content of its member stations. As of launch, eight local PBS stations have contributed cooking programs and recipes: KQED (Northern California), KCTS (Seattle), WMHT (Albany), WXXI (Rochester), WVIZ/PBS Ideastream (NE Ohio), WQED (Pittsburgh), WTTW (Chicago) and WGBH (Boston).

Users of PBS FOOD can access a full chef’s directory with information on more than 75 chefs from public television, TV schedules, companion websites, as well as direct links to popular culinary arts DVDs and cookbooks on SHOPPBS.org. 

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