Press Releases: 02/18/15

MSNBC (1)

MSNBC ANNOUNCES CHEF TOM COLICCHIO AS ITS FIRST-EVER FOOD CORRESPONDENT ACROSS ALL PLATFORMS

In New Role, Colicchio Will Create the First Cable and Digital Programming Specifically Focused On the Politics, Power, and Personalities of our Nation’s Food

NEW YORK – February 18, 2015 – MSNBC announced today that Tom Colicchio – the award-winning chef, restaurant owner, founder of Crafted Hospitality and TV personality – is becoming the network’s first-ever food correspondent across all platforms.
Colicchio will produce original reporting and in-depth video for MSNBC’s biggest TV shows, and host a new weekly food show on Shift, MSNBC’s new digital video experience.

A passionate advocate for healthy food, sustainable farming, smart food policy and combating hunger, Colicchio has until now been an occasional guest on MSNBC TV. In his new role, he will create the first cable and digital programming focused on an important challenge facing us all: our food.

From intensive farming to the quality of school lunches; from over-fishing to food stamps; Colicchio will show how our food is an essential – yet under-reported – part of our cultural and political debate. Colicchio will create:
Regular reports for Morning Joe and The Rachel Maddow Show, as well as other MSNBC daytime and primetime shows, including travel with MSNBC talent across the country.

“Stirring the Pot”: A new show on Shift by MSNBC, featuring digital documentaries and conversations with the people shaping today’s most compelling stories about food and its impact on our daily lives.

“Everyone Eats”: A series of exclusive interviews over lunch with a wide range of newsmakers, including sports stars, elected officials, actors and star chefs.

“There are few voices – if any – that are as passionate as Tom Colicchio is when talking about the food we eat and how it impacts our families and communities. I’ve long been a fan of his work and am thrilled that Tom’s fresh perspective will be integrated across all our platforms, from TV to Shift to social media,” said Phil Griffin, President of MSNBC. “Tom’s values, expertise and focus on advocacy are a perfect match for MSNBC and we can’t wait to watch his original and in-depth reporting in action.”

“As a chef, a father, and an advocate for sane food policy, I’m looking forward to bringing stories to MSNBC that highlight how critical food is to the workings of a functional, humane society,” said Tom Colicchio. “In today’s world it is impossible to separate our food culture from the politics and policies that shape our choices as consumers and taxpayers, whether we’re aware of them or not. The one thing we all have in common is that everyone eats, and I’m excited to partner with MSNBC on a show that fosters healthy dialogue and speaks to this basic common truth.”

Colicchio’s new role is part of MSNBC’s larger strategy to cover a broader set of stories that move and inspire Americans through its progressive lens, while investing in more original reporting from the field. In the coming months, MSNBC will announce additional changes that will generate more innovative and original programming for the network.

Biography of Tom Colicchio
Chef/Owner Crafted Hospitality & ‘wichcraft

Tom Colicchio was awarded his first three stars from The New York Times as executive chef of Mondrian. Since then he has seen similar acclaim for Gramercy Tavern (with Danny Meyer), his signature venture Craft (2002), and Colicchio & Sons (2010), all in New York. Craft was awarded The James Beard Foundation Award for “Best New Restaurant” in 2002, the same year Colicchio received The Bon Appétit American Food and Entertaining Award for “Chef of the Year.” The New York Times revisited Craft in September 2011, ten years after its debut, upholding its three stars and stating that the restaurant is “as magical and delicious as it was when it opened.”

Following Craft and its casual sibling, Craftbar (2003), Colicchio opened Craftsteak at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas (2002), Craft in Los Angeles (2007), Colicchio & Sons and Riverpark in New York (2010) and Heritage Steak at The Mirage in Las Vegas (2013). Outside of his fine dining restaurants, Colicchio opened ‘wichcraft – a sandwich shop rooted in the same food and hospitality philosophies as Craft – in New York City in 2003; ‘wichcraft now has 14 locations across the country. Looking ahead, Tom will open Beachcraft at 1 Hotel & Homes South Beach with a Mediterranean inspired menu showcasing South Florida’s local farms and fishermen, as well as a restaurant at The Beekman Hotel, a historic landmark in downtown NYC, set to open in late 2015.

Colicchio has published Think Like a Chef (2000), which won The James Beard Foundation “KitchenAid” Cookbook Award in May 2001; Craft of Cooking (2003); and a sandwich book inspired by ‘wichcraft (2009). In May 2010, Colicchio was awarded The James Beard Foundation’s coveted “Outstanding Chef” award, the culmination of his 30 years of hard work in the restaurant industry.

Since 2006, Tom has been applying his experience and expertise to cable television as the head judge on Bravo’s hit culinary competition series “Top Chef.” The Emmy-winning show will return for its 13thseason this Fall. In January 2015, Bravo premiered “Best New Restaurant,” a new series where Tom applies his expertise as the host, judge and executive producer, evaluating restaurants on their top to bottom execution of their culinary concepts.

Tom appears in and served as executive producer on A Place at the Table, Participant Media’s documentary about food insecurity in America, produced and directed by his wife, Lori Silverbush and Kristi Jacobson. A Place at the Table which premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and was released by Magnolia Pictures in 2013, has become the launchpad for a national movement centered on ending hunger in the United States.

\In an effort to broaden his long-standing social and political activism, Tom co-founded Food Policy Action in 2012 in collaboration with national food policy leaders, in order to hold legislators accountable on votes that have an effect on food and farming. He has also been an outspoken voice on issues like GMO labeling and the use of antibiotics in food sources, and he continues to lobby for better anti-hunger policies in America.

Tom and his restaurants give back to the community by serving on the boards of Children of Bellevue, City Harvest, Wholesome Wave and Food Policy Action. He lives in the West Village with his wife, Lori Silverbush, and three sons. When he’s not in the kitchen, Tom can be found tending to his garden on the North Fork of Long Island, or enjoying a day of fishing.