Exposure of Hispanic Youth to Alcohol Advertising

Publication Date:

Publisher: Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth

Author(s): Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Abstract:

The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at Georgetown University reports that alcohol companies systematically overexpose Hispanic youth to alcoholic beverage advertisements. This finding is of particular importance because Hispanics are the fastest growing demographic group in the United States, and 40 percent of Hispanics are under 21 - a much larger percentage than the general population. By the end of the decade, Hispanic youth will comprise nearly 20 percent of young people in the United States. This report represents the first effort to quantify the exposure of Hispanic youth to alcohol advertising compared to non- Hispanic youth. CAMY commissioned Virtual Media Resources (VMR) to audit the exposure of Hispanic youth to alcohol magazine, television and radio advertising in 2002. Specifically, CAMY found that in 2002: (1) Hispanic youth saw more alcohol advertising in magazines than non-Hispanic youth: (2) Hispanic youth heard more alcohol advertising on the radio than non-Hispanic youth; (3) alcohol advertising was placed on a majority of the TV programs most popular with Hispanic youth; and (4) both Hispanic youth exposure on the radio and television and spending on alcohol advertising were concentrated in a few geographic markets with large Hispanic populations. This report gives a detailed breakdown of alcohol companies' advertising expenditures by media type, advertisement placement, brand name and geographic location.