38°
Will Tennyson headed over to the City of Camden to explore its food and fitness scene.
Or, lack thereof, he say she found.
"Not only is it a food desert, it's also a fitness desert," said Tennyson in the 23-minute video that garnered just under 1 million views in three days.
Dubbed a "fitness funny guy" by Forbes, Tennyson is a popular fitness influencer who explores various food and fitness trends, documenting his findings on social media.
His video on Camden was geared toward examining the life of residents in a food desert, an urban area with limited access to affordable or nutritious food.
"There's plenty of food but it's all highly-processed junk," the YouTuber and fitness influencer said. "I feel like I should've watched 'The Wire' to prepare for this video."
A search for gyms in the city found three, including one public gym, he said.
Tennyson met a city resident at a local gym who graciously brought him on a tour of Camden's food scene. The pair stopped at the shuttered Pathmark, which Tennyson explains was the city's only supermarket for decades.
Now, all that's left — practically — is a SaveALot. Tennyson said locals complain about the prices and the quality of the food, and found SaveALot contained the smallest produce section he'd ever seen, he said.
Tennyson did find, however, an abundance of canned goods, packaged candy, chips, and soda, and plenty of stores in the city.
One resident gave Tennyson a tour of the neighborhoods remarked: "Another liquor store. How much liquor can we drink?"
"This is worse than I thought," Tennyson said.
On the plus side, there are 116 community gardens in Camden that produce fruits and vegetables. Tennyson visits one at the end of his tour, and ends his stay with a visit to Donkey's Place, where he tries, and falls in love with, his first-ever cheesesteak.
Dan Keashen, a spokesman for Camden County felt Tennyson's video was unfair in its portrayal of the city, calling the video "poverty porn" that lacks real reporting.
"We have world-class athletes that come out of Camden," said Keashen, who noted the Philadelphia 76ers Training Complex is in Camden. "There are about 80,000 good people who come out of Camden."
A former Camden resident, however, thanked Tennyson for his reporting.
"I grew up in Camden and I clicked on here not knowing this was the city you were going to," reads a comment on the video. "I love that you showed a positive side of a very misunderstood community. Ollie raised you well, Mr Tennyson. Much love."
Daily Voice reached out to the City of Camden's mayor's office for comment.
Click here for more of Tennyson's content on YouTube.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Whitehall-Coplay and receive free news updates.
