Summer Time: No Vacation From Alcohol Promotions and Problems
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Carlsberg beer was featured in the PG-13 Spider-Man movie. Spider Man 2 opens June 30, 2004. |
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The arrival of summer brings warm weather, long sunny days and a break from school for kids. But as soon as young people go on vacation and have free time, it seems like the alcohol industry intensifies its efforts to attract their attention. The industry maximizes product promotion during summer fairs, concerts, community festivals and holidays. Even movies are exploited for increased promotion, sales and consumption. Yet, the audience for such events is often made up of youth and families who are unwittingly exposed to heavy alcohol marketing.
Movies and concerts are a popular summer activity for teens, and thus a favored focus of alcohol marketers seeking young customers. Last summer’s highly- publicized “Spider-Man” movie shows the superhero springing off a large Carlsberg Beer truck in pursuit of a villain (View the Movie clip: Broadband or
Dial-up). Carlsberg Breweries’ Web site brags that the company “…can share a part of “Spider-Man’s” success…” as its “…logo is featured prominently in the film.” The site explains, “…the purpose of product placement is to increase general awareness of the Carlsberg brand among its target consumers”—who apparently can be found in the audience of PG-13 blockbusters like “Spider-Man.” Keep an eye out for alcohol product placement in “Spider-Man 2” this summer.
Or how about Teen Choice award-winning reggae star Shaggy, whose fan base includes many youth under the legal drinking age? Shaggy will be the “personality” behind Allied Domecq’s Malibu Rum, expected to be heavily promoted this summer with the release of his new album and worldwide tour. This is troubling, considering that one study found exposure to, and liking of, alcohol advertisements increases the likelihood that young people will drink alcohol.1
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| Corona Extra's new summertime promotion is aimed at African-Americans. |
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When events are sponsored by the alcohol industry, it sends a message that alcohol use is the norm and that it’s essential to having fun. It also creates an association between the brand and the event.
The connection between alcohol and events can ultimately harm public safety. The most striking example is the Fourth of July where more traffic fatalities are alcohol-related than on any other holiday. This summer, residents in San Diego, California’s Sail Bay community are pushing the City Council for an all-day July Fourth ban on alcohol at the beach. Last year, police wrote 552 citations for alcohol-related offenses, including public drunkenness and minors in possession of alcohol.
Local policy changes like those proposed in San Diego are one effective strategy for reducing alcohol-related problems. For events, alternatives to alcohol sponsorship include using non-alcohol sponsorship, establishing alcohol-free areas for families and youth, and prohibiting people from leaving events with alcohol. Play Fair Marin, a collaborative of local health organizations, replaced Miller Brewing Company as the longtime title sponsor at this summer’s Marin County Fair. Miller will no longer promote its brand at every concession stand, at the Entertainment Pavilion and in all of the Fair's promotional materials. The Play Fair collaborative is a great example of groups working together to make positive social changes on a local level. While summer is a great time for bringing people together, sensible alcohol polices can ensure that events also help to build safer and healthier communities.
1 J.W. Grube, “Alcohol advertising–a study of children and adolescents: preliminary results,” (Accessed Nov. 19, 2003).
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