Youth Exposure to Alcohol Ads on Television, 2002: From 2001 to 2002, Alcohol's Adland Grew Vaster

Publication Date:

Publisher: The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth

Author(s): The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Abstract:

Concerned with limiting youth access to alcohol and its appeal, The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth examined youth exposure to alcohol ads on television. Advertising occurrence and expenditure data as well as audience data were used. Findings suggest that the number of alcohol ads on television grew by 39 percent from 2001 to 2002. While youth ages 12 to 20 comprise 10 percent of the total audience for shows with alcohol advertising, much overexposure of youth to alcohol advertising results from the placement of ads on programs with youth audiences, contributing to youth exposure to alcohol advertising that is out of proportion to their presence in the total U.S. population (Youth 12-20 years of age represent 13.3 percent of those ages 2 and older). Through exposure to alcohol ads on youth-oriented programs, youth in 2002 were more likely than adults to have seen 66,218 alcohol ads, an increase of 30 percent over 2001. Marketers of beer and low-alcohol refreshers placed the majority of these ads. The National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine have recommended that alcohol companies adopt standards limiting alcohol advertising to audiences with less than 25 percent youth and, eventually, less than 15 percent youth. Had a 15-percent standard been in place in 2002, 61,741 ads would not have been placed on youth-oriented programming, substantially reducing youth exposure to alcohol advertising.