Are Teenagers Swayed by Liquor Ads?

by Jim Kouri, CPP A new study of more than 3,000 teens reports that underage persons who saw frequent ads for alcoholic beverages in stores and magazines were more likely to start drinking than those who did not. The study was conducted by Rand Health in South Dakota and was sponsored by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The report also indicated that teens who had already tried alcohol were more likely to increase their consumption when viewing ads in magazines or concessions at music and sporting events. “The more we can combat the pro-alcohol and drug information in our society the less likely we’re going to have to treat individuals down the road for substance abuse,” comments Gary Smith, Executive Director of Narconon Arrowhead, “Prevention is the key.” The media attention of college binge drinking deaths on campuses last year also sparked the University of Florida to take action. Officials at the University instructed a country band that was scheduled to perform on campus to drop all promotions for their alcoholic beverage sponsor out of concern for student binge drinking, despite costing them more than $12,000 per night in revenue according to the Independent Florida Alligator newspaper. The American Medical Association also released an article admonishing NASCAR for allowing hard liquor sponsorships, which place ads prominently on cars viewed by millions of teens. They also conducted a survey and found that 63% of Americans feel that marketing liquor on race cars sends the wrong message to young people regarding drinking and driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that there were over 2,300 alcohol-related fatalities in the year 2000 involving young people between the ages of 15 and 20. This accounted for more than one third of the total number for that year. While the Rand study of teenagers in South Dakota didn’t find conclusive evidence of the effect of alcohol advertising on television, a report issued last year by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth stated there was an increase of 90,000 alcohol ads on television compared to just two years prior. The study also indicated that 23 percent of the ads were more likely to be seen by youth than adults. While more than 10 million youth between the ages of 12 and 20 have reported drinking alcohol in the past month, there are some youths joining the fight against substance abuse. The Kansas City InfoZine online reported last month that area young people part of Youth with Vision filmed three public service announcements for the Missouri Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse. The prevention ads are part of the “Alcohol…Is It Worth It?" program. Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police. He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. He writes for many police and crime magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer, Campus Law Enforcement Journal, and others. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com, Booksamillion.com, and can be ordered at local bookstores.