Eater Lands Multiple Nominations for 2022 James Beard Media Awards

The James Beard Foundation announced the nominees for the 2022 Media Awards today, and Eater is nominated across multiple categories, from video to feature writing to audio.

Eater’s award-winning video team received a nod in the category of Visual Media — Short Form for an in-depth look at salt harvesting in Senegal’s Lake Retba. Workers wade through one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world to collect 60,000 metric tons of salt per year, a strenuous process that Eater captured on camera for over 11 million viewers (and counting).

For writing, contributor Ahmed Ali Akbar’s report on “the world’s greatest mangoes” (and the bootleg WhatsApp operation to bring them to the U.S.) was nominated in the Feature Writing category. In the Foodways category, two Eater pieces got nods: contributor James Bennett II’s historical look at beer in Black culture and history, from the significance of beer in pre-colonial West African social life to the craft brew industry’s neglect of the Black America in marketing; and Trisha Gopal’s celebration of the many immigrant-owned restaurants and street vendors tucked away behind gas stations across the U.S.

In the MFK Fisher Distinguished Writing Award category, contributor Hannah Selinger’s intimate account of reading David Chang’s memoir Eat a Peach was nominated. And Eater LA’s very own Mona Holmes was recognized in the Jonathan Gold Local Voice Award category for her reporting across the diverse, widespread Los Angeles food scene, including pieces on the uncertain future of downtown LA’s food scene; the best grocery store fried chicken in the city; and a deeply personal perspective on Los Angeles’s Black barbecue.

In addition to the six editorial nominations, Gastropod, the award-winning food podcast that joined Eater in 2021, was recognized with a nomination for Audio Programming.

Punch, Eater’s “sister publication” covering the world of bars, spirits, and drinking culture, was nominated in the Personal Essay, Long Form category, for contributor Miguel De Leon’s look at the colonial practices of winemaking and the spirit of imperialism that continues to obscure the experience of wine today.

Vox Media was also recognized for branded content in the Commercial/Sponsored Visual Media category, for a video series On the Rise with Marcus Samuelsson, created with creator/producer ACE and Uber Eats and airing on Eater. And for books, Punch founder and editor-in-chief Talia Baiocchi received a Restaurant and Professionals nomination for her book with Missy Robbins, Pasta: The Spirit and Craft of Italy’s Greatest Food.

Check out all of Vox Media’s 2022 James Beard Media Awards nominations here.