Jenaya McGee

Professor Hughes
English 1102
27 April 2015

Alcohol Advertising & Youth

Imagine driving down a dark road at night with nothing ahead of you and the only light
there is, is coming from the headlights of a black Nissan Altima. Out of nowhere, this car speeds
past you and slams into a tree. Later on, the news reports that the driver was a teenager who was
heading home from a party highly intoxicated and has now died. Many teens are influenced to
drink by many sources, such as alcohol advertisements. Alcohol is becoming the most commonly
used drug in America. Not only have alcohol advertisements been attracting people who are of
age to drink, but also the advertisements have been targeting youth. With such a high level of
advertising around consumers every day, it is likely that advertising shapes society. It is known to
have negative influences on the target population for which the adverts are aimed. In this essay, I
argue that alcohol advertising has negative effects on the youth in America. The government
should increase the price of alcohol and raise the purchase age. The government should also
focus on reducing advertising and marketing of alcohol.
A growing body of research indicates a positive association between alcohol advertising
and alcohol use among young people. Every year kids and teens see close to 20,000
commercials. Of these, approximately 2,000 are for alcoholic beverages. Add to these other
forms of advertising such as magazine ads, billboards, web sites and radio programs and most

young people will have seen approximately 100,000 alcohol ads by the time they turn 18
("Alcohol Advertising and Kids - Teaching Backgrounder."). Constant exposure to alcohol
products at an early age increases positive expectations about drinking.
According to the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Georgetown University,
alcohol companies spend nearly $2 billion every year on advertising in the United States.
Between 2001 and 2007, there were more than 2 million television ads and 20,000 magazine ads
for alcoholic products. This heavy advertising effort leads to significant youth exposure. The
Center analyzed the placements of over 2 million alcohol advertisement placements on television
between 2000 and 2007 and over 19,000 alcohol ads placed in national magazines between 2001
and 2006. In 2007, approximately 20% of television alcohol advertisements, almost all of which
were on cable television, were on programming that youth ages 12 to 20 were more likely to
view than adults of legal drinking age. In fact, alcohol advertising increased 38% between 2001
and 2007 ("Alcohol Advertising and Youth -- AAFP Policies -- AAFP."). For young people, large
and increasing television exposure has unfortunately offset reductions in exposure in magazines
in recent years.
Should we be concerned? It is well established that alcohol use plays a substantial role in
the three leading causes of death among teens and young adults: accidental injuries, suicides, and
murders. In addition, many young people begin drinking at a young age. Add to this the
engaging, interactive, and unregulated setting of the Internet, and marketers have a potent mix of
platforms from which to target youth.
Child development experts have voiced concerns about the possible links between
children's exposure to alcohol advertising and the development of attitudes about alcohol and
drinking habits. The countless alcohol-related media young people are exposed to reinforce the

idea that alcohol consumption is an everyday activity nothing more than harmless, rebellious
fun.
The extent of media exposure can also play a role. It is believed that children who watch
more television especially during weekends and prime time are more receptive to the
messaging in alcohol ads than children who are less frequent viewers. This is especially true for
advertisements that appear during favorite shows and sports programming. Alcohol also appears
in two thirds of the most popular programming for teens sports, sitcoms, music videos, horror
movies, and dramas and is most often depicted in a positive light.

WORKS CITED
Chen, Meng-Jinn, Joel W. Grube, Melina Bersamin, Elizabeth Waiters, and Deborah B. Keefe.
"Alcohol Advertising: What Makes It Attractive to Youth?" Journal of Health
Communication 10.6 (2005): 553-65. Print.
Nash, Avril S., Karen J. Pine, and David J. Messer. "Television Alcohol Advertising: Do Children
Really Mean What They Say?" British Journal of Developmental Psychology 27.1
(2009): 85-104. Print.
Ellickson, Phyllis L., Rebecca L. Collins, Katrin Hambarsoomians, and Daniel F. Mccaffrey.
"Does Alcohol Advertising Promote Adolescent Drinking? Results from a Longitudinal
Assessment." Addiction 100.2 (2005): 235-46. Print.
Sellman, J. D., Jennie L. Connor, and Peter R. Joyce. "How to Reduce Alcohol-related Problems
in Adolescents: What Can Parents Do and What Can the Government Do?" 44.9 (2010):
771-73. Academic Search Premier.