The show "Tyler's Ultimate" is the most pornographic show on Food Network. Watch it once or twice and you'll see what I mean. First, the premise of the show: they skim the best and deliver it to you in a neat package. Collections are a very common theme in pornography (and food television - see "The Best Of" and ". There's the semi-sexual way he talks about ingredients (bacon, butter, sometimes garlic, heavy cream, etc.), too. Most importantly is the direction/cinematography of the show. The close-ups are the most pornographic aspect of the show. Your face would never actually get that close to the ingredients when you cooked this dish. And then comes the "money shot" of the finished dish and the contented "mmmmm" at the end after he's taken a bite. Don't misunderstand me - I love this show and Tyler Florence is a beautiful man. It's just a strange show in some ways and takes a lot of cues from the adult video entertainment business.
Anyway, if there's a paper or book about pornographic imagery in cooking/food shows, I'd be interested in reading it. Or if you want to write it, you have my full support.
Unrelated, this book sound particularly fascinating.
