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Youth & the Media
� Jenna Caplette & Eris Miller, 2009
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Research shows that about 60% of alcohol advertising targets binge drinkers. The
average age of a binge drinker is between 15 and 26. By using sexy and attractive models and spokespersons the alcohol companies are saying �This is
what these people drink. If you want to be like them, or date one of them, than you should drink this too.�
A couple toasts each other. Behind them the fire in their home�s hearth crackles, exudes warmth. There�s two dozen roses and a box of chocolates on the table.
The light from the fire seems caught by the pale, bubbly champagne in the glasses the couple raises toward each other. Watching, you feel warm, romantic, you
begin to think that this kind of celebration is what Valentine's Day is really about.
You never see a couple arguing in these kinds of visuals. You don�t see someone waking with a hangover. Because what you are being sold here is a myth about the role that wine
or champagne plays in the prefect celebration.
As part of my work as the Prevention Specialist for the Adolescent Resource Center, a division of Alcohol and Drug Services of Gallatin County, I teach Media
Literacy � the ability to �read� television and movies, to know that there is a meaning and a message being conveyed in them.
Research shows that about 60% of alcohol advertising targets binge drinkers. The average age of a binge drinker is between 15 and 26. By using sexy and
attractive models and spokespersons the alcohol companies are saying �This is what these people drink. If you want to be like them, or date one of them, than
you should drink this too.�
These advertisements never show someone drinking alone, picking fights, or throwing up because the sheer reality of alcohol use, especially binge drinking is
too negative. Sure, the average adult can see through these false advertisements but one of the strongest reasons for keeping the drinking age 21 is because
until then, a youth's brain has not fully developed the ability to make sound judgments and logical decisions. When you combine this unsound thought processes
with illogical media, youth are destined to believe what they see. The media knows this.
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Since no single prevention entity has adequate funds to counter the myths presented in alcohol ads, it's up
to us to see the ads for what they are: advertisements, distortions of reality.
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Teens and young adults are making decisions now that can create a particular brand loyalty, a particular way of drinking that will become a lifetime habit.
Alcohol ads tell them that drinking is a critical �rite of passage� into adulthood.
The alcohol industry is the second biggest advertiser nationwide. They have been co-opting the holidays. For Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine�s Day the
wine folks try to tell us that celebration means drinking. At St. Patrick�s Day, in the summer, and Halloween it's all about beer.
Think about it. Ads at Valentine�s Day include soft, romantic music. Beautiful, elegant women. They make the appeal of alcohol classy, as if this is who you
will become if you drink. The hope seems to be that the audience for these ads will think, �Yeah, this is what I need to hold my relationship together, to build
a better life, to experience more romance."
Since no single prevention entity has adequate funds to counter the myths presented in alcohol ads, it's up to us to see the ads for what they are:
advertisements, distortions of reality.
Learn to question ads for yourself. Take a step back and analyze or evaluate the myth being sold. See each ad for what it is. Then, if you're a parent, or in a
mentoring position with youth, you'll be in a much stronger position to encourage youth to do the same.
Need help? That's what a Prevention Specialist is for. Please feel free to contact Jason Karls at our Adolescent Resource Center at 586-5908.
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Alcohol & Drug Services of Gallatin County
(406) 586-5493
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