Food Journalism

Marion Nestle Doesn’t Write HuffPo Story, Gets Credit for It Anyway (Updated)

Dr. Marion Nestle
Dr. Marion Nestle

The incredibly productive writer Marion Nestle — a nutrition, health, and food policy specialist — found herself being congratulated over the weekend for co-authoring a Huffington Post article she did not actually write. In the op-ed piece, Harlem Children’s Zone CEO Geoffrey Canada comes out in support of a city rule that would make sugary drinks ineligible for purchase by food stamp recipients, citing obesity statistics and the four billion dollars a year currently spent by federal program SNAP (or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) recipients on sugary drinks. “I don’t recall writing it and I don’t believe I have ever met Mr. Canada, although I would be delighted to do so,” Nestle wrote on her blog, Food Politics, about the case of mistaken identity. “The article does indeed reflect my views but does not read like something I wrote.” The Huffington Post has since amended the byline and added an editor’s note. [Food Politics, Huffington Post]

Update: Now Dr. Nestle is saying she helped out with the story after all.

Marion Nestle Doesn’t Write HuffPo Story, Gets Credit for It Anyway