News
Latest Work
For The Atlantic, I wrote about the rise of 15-minute groceries and history of fast delivery in the U.S. across the decades.
Over at WIRED, I wrote about the unholy union between Uber and taxi cabs and the trouble with disruption culture.
For Vox’s truly wonderful Best Money I Ever Spent series, I wrote about the surreal joys of surveilling a stranger’s purchases.
For The Atlantic, I wrote about the rise of online sports betting and the experience of falling into a digital gambling vortex.
For The Washington Post, I wrote about the 50th birthday of the Egg McMuffin and the decline of American entrepreneurship.
I wrote about the myth surrounding pandemic unemployment benefits and labor force participation for The Washington Post.
For Marker, I covered Oatly’s udder domination, the religious roots of fast-food fish sandwiches, and Taco Bell’s spellbinding vegetarian pivot.
Here’s a deep dive I wrote for Marker on the eerie, wild rise of ghost kitchens during the pandemic.
At The Washington Post, I wrote about what Capitol attack reveals about the mainstreaming of political violence.
For Marker, I dove into Japan’s konbini culture and the future of 7-Elevens and convenience stores.
I wrote about working as a census taker and the total chaos and implications of the 2020 count for The Atlantic.
Here’s a piece about the dangers of dining culture for restaurant workers during the pandemic for The Washington Post.
Here’s an opinion piece I wrote for The Washington Post arguing that we should politicize the coronavirus crisis.
For Vox, I took a long look at the social conditions that turned fitness trackers into a consumer fixture.
I wrote on the history and implications of NYC’s foie gras ban for Inside Hook.
I wrote about the viral Popeyes chicken sandwich and the very involved creative process of its culinary team for TIME.
For TIME, I explained the very Texan despair over the sale of the Whataburger chain to a Chicago investment firm.
I wrote the Five Myths feature for The Washington Post about, well, fast food.
Latest News
I chatted with Steve Inskeep on NPR Morning Edition about McDonald’s corporate layoffs and the broader economic landscape.
Season 4 of The Food That Built America is now airing. Check me out across a handful of episodes here.
I joined Boston Public Radio to talk about my work on the gig economy, Uber, and the impact of tech disruption.
Catch me talking business and convenience culture in the new History Channel series The Fast History Of... Now streaming here.
I’m back for another season of The Food That Built America on The History Channel. Stream it here!
I joined Nuala McGovern at BBC Context to talk about the Super Bowl and the online sports gambling trend.
I’m talking fast food and 1980s trends on the reboot of the National Geographic’s The ‘80s. (Now streaming on Disney+.)
I joined Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street podcast to talk about the sad tale of defunct fast-food chains.
I appeared on The History Channel’s latest season of Modern Marvels. Check it out here!
I talked about the good and bad of fast food with Dr. Marcia Chatelain on Ed Levine’s Special Sauce podcast.
I joined Oscar Ramirez of The Daily Dive to talk about the rise of ghost kitchens in American restaurants.
I’m on a few episodes of Season Two of The History Channel’s The Food That Built America. Stream here!
I launched The Crunchwrap, a semi-frequent newsletter on Substack. Subscribe for free here!
Dr. Marcia Chatelain and I discussed the fast-food franchises that disappeared for the America’s Test Kitchen podcast Proof.
I spoke with Tracy Smith for CBS Sunday Morning about drive-thru culture in the time of coronavirus.
I joined the Gastropod podcast to talk about how McDonald’s became a juggernaut and fast food’s unlikely place in civil rights movement.
Drive-Thru Dreams made NPR’s 2019 list of favorite books.
Smithsonian Magazine picked Drive-Thru Dreams as one of the best food books of 2019.
Amazon named Drive-Thru Dreams to its list of best books of 2019.
Sarah Gonzalez and I talked about the history, technology, and future of french fries for NPR’s Planet Money.
I joined the legendary Ed Levine for the Serious Eats podcast Special Sauce to talk food and writing. Part I | Part II
The great Houston Matters had me on to discuss the cult of Whataburger and America’s affection for fast food.
I drove around with Derrick Shore of KPRC’s Houston Life and visited Whataburger, Taco Bell, and McDonald’s.
I joined Texas Public Radio’s The Source to talk about the effect of fast food on communities and plant-based burgers.
I joined NPR/KCUR’s Central Standard to chat Kansas history and how White Castle transformed the hamburger into the national meal.
Louisa Torres of NPR’s The Salt and I discussed the intricacies and complexities of America’s relationship with fast food.
Drive-Thru Dreams has been selected as one of the 10 Best Books of the Month by Amazon Book Review.
I joined NPR/KBUR’s On Point to talk Drive-Thru Dreams, American mobility, fast-food history, and Taco Bell.
Kate Bernot and I caught up about the culture and criticism of fast food for The Takeout.
Over at Vox, Rachel Sugar and I discussed how fast food explains national divides and offers unlikely meeting places.
I also talked about Drive-Thru Dreams and American history with Anna Diamond over at The Smithsonian.
Just ahead of its release, Drive-Thru Dreams was named a
Publishers Weekly Pick of the Week.