Sizzle: Bacon Lovers of the World Unite
EmailWe here at "Nightline" often report on important issues involving your personal weight, health and nutrition. Take last week's restaurant "Calorie Count" story, for example. But from time to time, we like to indulge. It looks like the third block of the show tonight will be a John Berman/Sarah Rosenberg look at the bacon boom. That's right — bacon! This "Periclean Age of Bacon" is for real, our visiting expert and Time Magazine food columnist Josh Ozersky tells us over a plate of the delicious and he explains distinguished breakfast meat. Asked by Berman whether bacon is a stand alone phenomenon or a sideshow to the main dish, Ozersky responds, "Bacon is like the character on a sitcom that's brought in as the zany neighbor and the takes over the show with his catchphrase or whatever." As for bacon's future, he assures us it is "infinite, prosperous, a broad, sunlit upland." I tend to agree with his outlook. While too much bacon can be unhealthy, there is no disputing that it tastes delightful on a cheeseburger. Or by itself. Speaking of burgers, Ozersky has appeared on "Nightline" before, including in the report embedded below "Burgernomics" about the rise of the burger amid financial ruin, a story under consideration as a James Beard Foundation award nominee. If you are among those who do not dig on swine, no offense intended. UPDATE: Here's is last night's mouthwatering segment, "Bacon Bliss."
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Josh Ozersky stated that the bacon that we consume is the same bacon that Thomas Jefferson ate.REALLY? I doubt that there were as many as ten to twenty chemicals in bacon then and most certainly not sodium nitrate and sodium nitrate.Perhaps this is why Jefferson,as far as we know did not die from cancer.Mr.Ozersky proceeded to chew with his mouth open,certainly a SWINISH practice[pun intended].
Posted by: Anthony Marsh | April 7, 2010, 12:13 am 12:13 am
Why on earth would ABC post anything promoting bacon, let alone an entire 15mins?! Obviously your reporter and staff, everyone involved in giving this segment the green light to air, did not do thorough research. Are you aware that pigs are squeezed so tightly into transportation trucks as the drive across the highways to slaughter houses, that their intestines are squeezed out their anuses? SHAME ON ABC FOR AIRING this segment that promotes more death and horror to the slaughter of more pigs. Bacon is not merely a word, it’s dead pig which has suffered immensely at the hands of cruel slaughter house workers. But what do you care, it’s a news story.. which will also help make America even fatter. Smart ABC, brilliant.
Posted by: Susan | April 7, 2010, 3:10 am 3:10 am
No amount of bacon is good for you. It is unclean.
Posted by: mom | April 7, 2010, 6:54 am 6:54 am
Wow what hippocrats all you people are. First off, if you don’t like it, then don’t watch it. Second off, do you think everything else you eat is chemical free including all the “organic foods”…please don’t be so naive. Third of all, of course bacon isn’t good for you, thanks for stating the obvious. But I would like my right to choose whether I want it or not thank you very much.
Posted by: Kevin | April 7, 2010, 10:20 am 10:20 am
is that YOUR mom schoetz up there? too funny. i love ozersky, but the guy looks like he could probably afford to eat a little less bacon… and @susan, as an animal lover, i sympathize with your voice on why we should think twice about eating bacon, but attacking ABC news for covering a popular food item a lot of people cannot live without seems a bit over the top.
Posted by: mona | April 7, 2010, 11:22 am 11:22 am
I like bacon crisp and drained of all grease, like my mom would make it. I do not find this kind of bacon anywhere. It is all floppy and dripping in grease. Disgusting. So I do not eat it anymore. I wish restaurants would get rid of the bacon. Why are they putting bacon on everything? Is it to mask the bad taste of what they are putting it on?
Posted by: Proud Native American and Angry Independent Voter | April 7, 2010, 12:03 pm 12:03 pm
I buy regular sliced bacon and slow-smoke it for about 4 hours. Yowza! It makes me agree completely with the statement that what’s wrong with a Bacon Explosion is that there’s not enough bacon.
Personally, I thought Bacon Bliss was a great piece, especially in light of the articles which preceded it.
Posted by: Texas Gal | April 7, 2010, 12:19 pm 12:19 pm
Josh – Saltpeter has been around alot longer than that – Do your research. And there are many bacons with no other chemicals.
Susan – Actually, it is less that 5 minutes, not 15 – It even says so on the player so you don’t even need a stopwatch. And this was never claimed to be a story on raising Pork. Perhaps you should start your own network???
Susan – Thanks for the explanation – next time, please not so much detail as people bore of those long-winded thoughts – Keep your comments brief.
Posted by: Tom | April 7, 2010, 12:28 pm 12:28 pm
What has never and will never be reported on is the terrible life these pigs have before they are slaughtered for your bacon.
If you are one of those that feels you should have the right to eat meat, then by all means – do what you must. But at the very least, you should be compassionate enough to care how your meat is treated before you consume it. Recognize that bacon doesn’t just grow on trees. A living, breathing animal has to be raised and slaughtered to get it.
Make an effort to find “humane” meat (if such a thing can actually be called humane) and sign petitions for animal rights. Do something to make their lives a little bit easier and offset the negativity of slaughtering them for your breakfast.
Posted by: Haylee | April 7, 2010, 10:16 pm 10:16 pm