Media Jumps On 'Americans Can't Cook' Story
Sometimes the food media travels in mindless packs just like White House correspondents. Such is the case about a story trending today, that 28% of Americans over age 25 say they can't cook.
The only way to lure Don Draper into the kitchen was with an open bottle of whiskey
The story comes from a press release by a cooking appliance company.
We found it picked up by Bon Appetit ("Americans Concoct Sad Excuses For Not Cooking"), the Huffington Post, and a variety of other publications.
There's just one major flaw with this survey: there's no historical context.
This isn't like Gallup's fascinating annual surveys on American drinking habits, which have been conducted since 1939.
SFoodie bets that 72 percent of Americans claiming they can cook might be the highest in the history of the nation.
Think about the Mad Men era: Could Don Draper cook? Men only entered the kitchen in this country in large numbers in this generation. And men represent nearly half of the adults in this country.
But you know, it's nice to feel superior. Our favorite headline on this story: UPI wrote "One-third in U.S. can't cook."
We like that one because, you know, at least 28 percent, or maybe one-third, of American journalists probably can't do math.
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