Episode #43 - Tara Cox, Rachael Ray In Season, Drew + Jonathan Reveal
Michael (2:30)
Hi, Tara, welcome to the show. So great to see you.
Tara (2:32):
Hi, thank you guys for having me. I'm so glad to be here.
Hanna (2:33):
First of all, we are huge fans of Rachel Ray and the work that you do, so super excited to chat with you today.
Michael (2:34):
Why don't we get started with your career path? You've been in journalism for quite a while, almost 24 years by our counts. So how, how did you get into it?
Tara (2:54):
I was a lover of magazines. When I was a kid, when I was in high school, I read every magazine subscribed to all of them. And when I was in college, I was fortunate enough to get an internship at Sassy Magazine, which really at that point I was 18 and I thought I made it.
I was done like, this is great. I don't need to do anything else with my life. Um, and once I had that internship, I knew this was my career path. Um, but I actually was a psych major in college. Um, but when I graduated, I knew I was gonna, you know, work at a magazine. And my first job was at Details Magazine. So when I worked at Details Magazine, it was going through some changes. The Editor-in-Chief had been new and the Editor that I worked under was let go. And someone else came in, and he went on to start another magazine. And then I was brought over to that magazine. So I worked at a Golf Magazine for awhile. Um, and that was, it was a startup. It was an amazing experience. So I learned a lot there and things kind of picked up and I jumped around to a lot of places I'd often get poached or, you know, have a better offer come along. Um, so I'd been through, you know, fashion men's golf. Worked at science, you know, popular mechanics for awhile. Uh, when the Rachel Ray Food Network Magazine, Men's Journal. Um, and I worked at an RV magazine for a while as well. So I run all of the whole gamut of, you know, all the topics that are out there.
Hanna (4:07):
Amazing. So what do you like most about being a writer?
Tara (4:10):
Oh, being a writer is great because you get to wear so many different hats, right? You get to try out everything, you get to have these amazing experiences, travel, eat things. Um, you just, you get to live out like all of your dreams and fantasies, kind of. And even if it's only for a day or an hour or a little bit, and then you get to relive it as you're writing it. And then you get to share your experiences with the readers. And the feedback that you get back is just really rewarding. Like whenever I hear people tell me, oh yeah, you know, I tried that thing or I'm making a bucket list of, of the things you've written about or the things you've shown us. So the foods that you're talking about, it's like, wow, am I making someone else's life a little bit better expanding their horizons a little bit more. So it feels really good.
Michael (4:51):
You know, we really feel like we're coming out of the pandemic slowly, but surely, and everyone is pivoting one way or another, you know, that's probably not going to change for the foreseeable future. So what do you think are the most significant changes you're seeing in the world of journalism in particular, and how are they affecting the way you work on a daily basis?
Tara (5:13): You know, we're still all about integrity. We still want to do good quality work. We still want to make sure our words are fact checked, you know, and copy edited in the print world and what not. Um, I think we, we are, you know, it's, it's been a, it's been a strange year where, you know, how far do you go? Um, what topics do you cover?
You know, we stopped some of our travel coverage. Um, so we were very aware of that entertaining coverage. Like how can you plan the big holiday issue and sharing food and everyone touching and eating off each other's plates and parties when we didn't know what was going to be happening, you know, the following year. So I think we're being a little more cautious in how we approach things. And you know, when the pandemic first started, I think we all thought we were going to be home for two weeks or a month. And then we're, you know, uh, planning issues and doing things and realizing, oh gosh, no, we can't go that route anymore.
So I think it's just, we're thinking ahead, many more steps of all the different possibilities, even as things are getting better now, we're still not really sure. You know, what's, what's down the line next. This has been such an unexpected 18 months, 19 months, whatever we're on now. So I think there’s caution, um, telling the stories of really great things that have been happening, the positive aspects, um, kind of motivating people, you know, in the food world there's been, it's been tough. There's been some really beautiful, interesting things happening as well.
Hanna (6:34):
So much innovation in our industry. So that’s the silver lining. Speaking of, Rachel Ray magazine for our listeners, how would you describe it? And who's the audience?
Tara (6:41):
So, uh, you know, Rachel Ray has gone through a lot of changes. It used to be Rachel Ray every day, and it was more of a grocery store magazine, but quirky, we were not about being perfect. We definitely like, embodied who Rachel is. You know, you get it done and people that want quick weeknight dinners. We've now evolved. It's called Rachel Ray in season and we're quarterly now. And we've gone a little bit more upscale. Um, but not again, not fancy and not intimidating. It's still Rachel, but at a different level, you know, she's evolved over the time that she's been a celebrity and we've kind of evolved with her. So our audience is basically mostly women in their forties and fifties. Um, and we also get a lot of the millennials and the gen X that grew up with Rachael where I get a lot of people tell me, well, she taught me to cook.
I used to watch her after school or in the mornings. Um, and I think they see a different side of it and they see that edgier side of Rachel, you know, Rachel is really into like cool music and stuff. She does have a very cool side that I think was never really presented in her earlier in her career. Um, and I think so people follow us for that now.
Hanna (7:41):
Yeah. I mean, I have to say also has a very cool husband. Yeah. He's actually, he is literally a rock star.
Michael (7:48):
He has good taste in cocktails.
Tara (7:50):
He's got a cocktail in every issue of the magazine. So yeah. Check us out for that.
Michael (8:00):
So circling back to the magazine, you are Executive Managing Editor. So what does that entail and what do you do on a daily basis?
Tara (8:08):
A little bit of everything. So I'm kind of, um, I kind of keep the trains running on time, so I oversee the editorial, the art and the photo departments make sure that all their stuff's coming in on time. Creating the schedule so that we can, you know, get the pages out the door. I ever see the budgets. Um, I oversee a lot of the big picture, creative thinking as well shape as the magazine relaunched and was involved in a lot of the shaping of the magazine. I support the editor in chief as much as I can, you know, every day. So it's definitely, I get to do a little bit of this and a little bit of that, which is what I really like about this job. And, and just to keep the trains running. And so, you know, I always, I enjoy the business of managing the creative. It's fun to manage creative people to challenge, you know, it could be hurting cats sometimes too, but to get everyone going and, you know, bring everyone together to make sure that all this stuff can happen. You know, every, every time we put out an issue.
Hanna (8:57):
How do you curate the content between the magazine and online, and also how much overlap is there between the two?
Tara (9:02):
Our website is small. Um, and we, we run a little bit differently than some of the other titles at our company. So we actually oversee our own website where a lot of, a lot of the other titles there, there are separate. Um, a lot of it is everything, you know, things that were in the print go to web. And then we, because we are such a small team, um, it's, it's, you know, Something we're passionate about. That goes online. That's usually, you know, and we try to do different for awhile. We were doing some essays, um, and w as staff changes, you know, sort of the, the topics change a little bit, but we try to stay current. Um, we try to sort of educate people or we can go, you know, we can go a little bit more in depth, a little more in detail on things, you know, on the web. It's not just four issues a year with a limited number of pages. Um, so the, with the magazine it’s sort of that keepsake, you want to keep that in your coffee table. You're going to want to put it on your bookshelf and hang on to it. With the website, we can tell you a little more with what's going on in the moment.
Hanna (10:00):
Yeah. So in the coming months, what stories will you be working on that our listeners can participate in?
Tara (10:05):
So, for Rachel Ray, you know, the magazine's called In Season, and we basically are focusing on seasonal produce and cooking. Um, we're always interested in new twists on, you know, the classic things that are out there, twists on weeknight dinner. You know, easy things to make at home trends, interesting visual trends that are happening in food. We're very into, uh, you know, feel good stories, do good stories, people that are doing amazing charity work or feeding people, or, you know, getting food into communities where there there's an issue. Women in the food industry has always been a hot topic for us as well. So, so those are the things that we focused on.
We're very into feel-good stories, do-good stories of people that are doing amazing charity work, like feeding people, or getting food into communities where there is an issue. Women in the food industry has always been a hot topic for us as well.
Hanna (10:43):
It's educational. It's fun, very inspiring.
Michael (10:48):
Under the What’s New section, you present a lot of feature stories, profiles Q and A's and essentially new product reviews. And, uh, we particularly enjoy the, We Try to column, I love that column. How did that come about? I mean, it's so much fun to read.
Tara (11:07):
I started before I even got back to the magazine. This is my second go around at the magazine. 15 years ago when it launched. Um, but it was kind of like, we would use it for new products once in a while it was, wasn't really a thing. And I started going to different events or experiencing different things.
And I think I went to a restaurant that had a fishing pond. And you would go fish for your meal. I'm not sure if it's still around. But, you know, I was like, I got to go check that out. And of course I'm going to make a story. And then that sort of evolved into like, well, here I am doing all these kooky things, so let's make it the, we tried at column. Um, so it's fun to go out and try new things or try new products and, um, you know, see what they're all about.
Michael (10:48):
Well, speaking of kooky things, you recently covered very interesting edible, namely cricket cookies, which we think was kind of brave. So would you say they're really craveable at the end of the day?
Tara (10:57):
Well, I went into it thinking, like a chocolate chip cookie that's nice and sweet and whatever. And I took that first bite and I was like, oh no, it's not that. But I'm realizing it's in the realm of like healthy cookies. So once I wrapped my head around that, the crickets don't make a difference if they're actually, they're healthy for you, it's adding more protein to the cookie. So, once I sort of got out of the super sweet, you know, childhood candy, cookie kind of mode, um, it was actually really good. I could see, like, you know, when you have your four o'clock craving for tea or coffee, it's a really nice dunker, you know, for, for that moment. So you’re not filling yourself up with a lot of sugar or junk.
Um, so yeah, that was actually my second foray into insects because it was a couple of years ago. Uh, I had an insect pizza that ad a topping of ants and, uh, freeze dried scorpion. And that was interesting.
Hanna (12:46):
Very interesting. Well, for me, I found your article about a cocktail making robot quite interesting, because I love going to the bars and, and seeing bartenders in action, regardless. I thought that was a very interesting story. And there is something to be said about just being able to push a button, you know, and get a solid cocktail.
Tara (13:10):
Especially during a pandemic, the perfect pandemic gadget. It was around January, February of last year when I got to test it out. I had fun testing that went out in my pajamas all day long. And that was great.
Hanna (13:26):
Yeah. So how do you choose these cool items to spotlight? I mean, do they come to you or do you seek them out?
Tara (13:32):
It’s a little bit of both, right. Because I mean, that's naturally the sort of content, I mean, To be interested in, in my normal life. I like quirky things. Um, so I'm not, it’s always going to have to have a quirky or interesting slant be something different, something that the average person might not just pick up and do on their own or be able to do on their own. Um, so I see it as if I get to try it to let you know it's okay.
So, you know, you're not going to spend the money or the time or the effort or the fear, you know, ants or what have you, but you know, I'll, I'll do it for you and let you know that it's okay. So yeah, some things come my way. Um, but it definitely has to be things that are interesting different quirky. You know, I'm not just going to test yogurt or something, but if it's got some weird slant to it or something that seems a little bit not too interesting or that's, you're good, but, but I'll give it a shot.
Um, but it also can't just be for shock value. I'm not just going to cover, you know, when people do the crazy milkshakes with like everything and their grandmother on top of it, um, or was it 10 years ago, we had like donuts with gold leaf on it, or, you know, that was a $600 donut. I'm not going to do that. It's going to have to be something that's going to have to be good or have a purpose or bring you pleasure. And not just for, you know, the hottest pepper, you know, not just for shock value.
Michael (14:49):
You're providing a true service there. So let's talk about Drew and Jonathan Reveal, the brand new quarterly magazine by Drew and Jonathan Scott, the property brothers. So can you tell us all about it?
Tara (14:56):
That also launched in January of 2020? So it's a brand new magazine, it's a home magazine, um, kind of filtering that world through the eyes of Drew and Jonathan Scott, you know, the host of HGTV, property brothers. Um, so it's fun and playful. Playful, but has some really good solid tips and design information. Um, you know, it, it's basically, we're capturing their world a little bit and they're super fun, super playful, but also really smart and know what they're doing.
Hanna (15:25):
So I think that's sort of the gist of the magazine. Given that this is a quarterly magazine. How far in advance do you decide what to cover?
Tara (15:32):
Yeah, it's actually kind of shocking. The easy thing to tell people is basically a year in advance. If you're pitching a year to nine months, I mean, a year is a little bit far in advance, but you know, I've been getting all it for, for Rachel, I’ll be getting all these pitches for gift guides and what not, you know, mostly for online at this point, but I'm like we were done with our gift guides in the spring pretty much. So we're a little bit ahead of everyone else's at quarterly. And also because we're, client-based magazines, um, both Rachel and Drew and Jonathan are very involved in the process of making the magazine, which means our deadlines are spread out a little bit. So we need to, we have, instead of just, you know, working on pages up until we ship, we're actually doing the back and forth process with them getting them involved. So things are happening a little bit earlier as well.
So I always joke, like, you know, when, when it's this summer, it's not a bad time to start thinking about next summer. I mean, we're not actually working on those pages just yet, but it's a good, you know, six to nine months out. So it's certainly a longer lead time than a regular monthly magazine.
Hanna (16:24):
That's great to know. Thank you so much.
Hanna (16:25):
All right. So as you know, we call our podcast Hospitality Forward. So what organization or person have you seen that's really innovating and moving the hospitality and travel industry forward?
Tara (16:43):
I think after this, these 18 months, I don't think I can pick just one person or industry or thing. I just feel like it's really been the people, the workers that have been pulling through. And like we said earlier than innovating and striving to make their restaurants viable and serve the people. I mean, in the early days when people were serving all the, um, the hospital workers and stuff and giving takeout, you know, providing takeout to those of us that were sheltering in place. Um, and then as things started to open up, you know, the outdoor dining, the coming up with interesting cocktails to go in bags.
I just think it's, you know, the blood, sweat and tears, literally of all these hard, hard working people that have figured out what their niche is or what their neighborhood or their community is, um, to keep these things going and to bring awareness, to, you know, just have difficult all of that has been for them. You know, we did lose a lot of places and that's tragic, but we can still go out and we can still, you know, support these places. And that's because these guys have persevered when the rest of us were sitting in our PJ's, you know, drinking cocktails from a machine, they were sweating doing, you know, coming out in that. I mean, that's, that's the truest bravery of all, you know, dealing, dealing with everyday people. So I think it's those workers that are really the ones that are most interesting to me right now.
Michael (17:58):
I agree. It makes you, it makes you appreciate them so much more.
Tara (18:01):
Oh my gosh, 1000 percent.
Hanna (18:03):
That’s what makes our industry so beautiful is the amazing people.
Tara (18:08):
It's true. You know, when things were bad and grocery stores have lines and I didn't want to do with that, a friend of mine owns a restaurant in the neighborhood and that's when she pivoted to a groceries. Right, because it was easier for her to get those through the supply chains. And you know, you guys follow me Instagram. I like to post a lot about eggs. And at one point I was joking. Like, what if I run out of eggs? You know, um, she's like, I got your back and I was getting my eggs from her, you know, so she was basically having a pantry service, you know, where we can go and get all of your essentials. And I think I got sanitizer from her and rubber gloves and, um, so sort of definitely changed. I've always been friendly with her, but it's certainly changed my relationship with her and she was there for me and I wanted to be there for her. So, I was sending all my friends there as well. Like this is a cool neighborhood places.
Don't wait online at Trader Joe's, go over to her and get everything you need. It's an Indian restaurants. She got more interesting food than you're going to get elsewhere anyway. But it was that, that comradery, I think that we all felt. And you know, you're talking to people in your neighborhood that you didn't know, you know, you go to the restaurant, maybe, you know them, but you're going to a new place or a more convenient place.
And you're getting to know these people and we're in it together. It's kind of how a lot of the pandemic and a lot of what went on in the world with everyone so divided, but it's how it should have been when we were all there for each other. Like, I'm going to go to your pizzeria to give you money and you're going to give me food and we're doing it.
Maybe I can make pizza at home. Maybe I have a fridge full of food, but I want to help you. And you're going to feed me something good and give me a break from cooking. And that's, I mean, that really strengthened the communities, you know, on such a small scale. I mean, people always say in New York is, you know, a bunch of little villages, you know, pulled together. And I think we felt that so much during the pandemic and it was because of our food places, our restaurants, our takeout, our cafes. Um, it was really, I mean amazing.
Michael (19:49):
I mean food is culture. Food is what binds us together.
Hanna (19:51):
Moving on to something more personal. What is your favorite cocktail to share with a good friend?
Tara (19:53):
I have three favorite cocktails. I alternate.
Hanna (19:55):
I love it. The more the merrier.
Tara (19:58):
It depends on the season. So, it's going to either be a Negroni, a Manhattan or a slightly dirty Martini, usually vodka, maybe gin, usually vodka. And I always say, I want a body, but not filthy, slightly dirty.
Michael (20:19):
The trifecta.
Hanna (20:21):
Exactly. You can't go wrong with any of those cocktails. It's just happy drinks.
Tara (20:25):
Exactly. And they're easy enough to make two, right? That's the other thing you don't have to be too fancy. You don't have to be too fussy.
Hanna (20:28):
Exactly, equal parts. Anyone can make a Negroni. Exactly. That's true.
Hanna (20:36):
It’s virtually indestructible. With travel resuming, what's your next dream destination and why?
Tara (20:40): Gosh, the world. I actually had a trip to Mauritius that was canceled in 2020. So I'm hoping to get there within the next year or two. I was going with a close friend who's from there and I'm very close with her family. So, I hope to be able to see all of them. Hawaii is another one. I actually may have seen the spam cake that we featured in Rachel Ray.
I became, so I met the creator of that on Instagram. We became really good friends. We talk all the time now through Instagram and yeah, so she's invited me out there. I'm like, yeah, I'm not quite ready to travel just yet. And it was over the summer, but at some point I want to get out and I want to cook with her and hang out with her and eat a lot of spam with her.
Michael (21:22)
The spam expert.
Hanna (21:22):
I have to say, I love spam.