Amanda Cargill

Latina Magazine
Of Latina magazine’s 10 annual issues, each focused on a particular theme. November was food. As such, the largest block of successive ad-free pages was allocated to a food feature. Historically, that feature highlighted a culinary trend or a popular chef. I proposed we cover something more substantive; specifically, food desserts and their disproportionately negative impact on Latinos. Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign, which contained a food accessibility pillar, had recently launched, and public discourse around food insecurity was increasing. To execute, I contacted policy advocates and grass roots changemakers, conducting interviews — often in Spanish — to source Latino-specific anecdotal data that had yet to see daylight. Additionally, I tapped my network of food experts to broker an interview with Marion Nestle, the foremost authority on America’s foodways and nutritional access disparities. Reader feedback was sizable and overwhelmingly positive. In response, Latina published harder-hitting food stories in subsequent issues.