Transcript Alcohol – Marketing the Myths - School

Alcohol – Marketing the Myths
“As a society we need to stop
marketing the myth of alcohol,
and start telling the truth: too much
alcohol damages; too much alcohol kills”
Professor Ian Gilmore
(Chairman of Alcohol Health Alliance and
President of the Royal College of Physicians)
Learning Objectives:
1. Identify and dispel some of the
myths that exist about alcohol.
2. Examine the methods used to promote
alcohol and critically analyse the way in
which alcohol marketing is regulated.
Dispelling the Myths
MYTH:
A widely held but
false belief or idea.
Think:
What Myths about
alcohol exist and where
do they originate?
Myth: We’re a
nation of drinkers,
nothing’s new!
FACT:
As a nation, we are drinking
far more than we used to drink:
“Household expenditure on all
alcoholic drinks increased by 81%
between 1992 and 2006”
(DEFRA 2008)
“In 2007 there was nearly
enough alcohol sold in Great Britain
to enable every man and woman
over the age of 16 years to exceed
the recommended guidelines for men”
(The Nielsen Company 2008)
Myth: Binge
drinking is more of
a problem amongst
young people.
FACT:
As a nation, we are
all drinking more:
“Particular concern is expressed
About the drinking of young
people…they (young people)
are drinking in increasing
harmful ways – but so is the
rest of society” (BMA –
‘Under the Influence’ 2009)
Myth: Young people
are healthier than adults,
their livers can cope
with alcohol better.
FACT:
Unit guidelines are there for
adults. There are no known
safe amounts for young people:
“Young people are more vulnerable
to the effects of alcohol than
adults. Young people may be
particularly at risk from the effects
of alcohol because it will be
concentrated in a smaller body”
(Dept. of Health 2009)
FACT:
Myth: It’s a legal
drug, therefore it
must be okay!
Legal does not mean safe.
Think:
•Why is alcohol a legal drug –
are there any historical reasons?
•What would happen if alcohol
was made illegal tomorrow?
•What parallels can be drawn
Here between alcohol and
tobacco?
Myth: It’s HARMLESS!
STOP:
How do we
measure
harm?
Task: In pairs, make a list
of the criteria we might
use when assessing how
harmful a drug is?
Mean Harm Scores (David Nutt 2007)
Fact: measuring harm
is a controversial issue!
Fact: alcohol is an addictive drug
38% of men and 16% of women
(age 16-64) have an alcohol use
disorder, equivalent to
Approximately 8.2 million
people in England.
About 2.9 million, or 7%, of the
adult population are
dependent on alcohol.
(Source: The Academy of
Medical Sciences)
Fact: alcohol is a contributory factor in
Crime
Counting
Cost
around -half
of all violentthe
crimes.
According to the 2005/06 BCS
victims believed the offender
or offenders to be under the
influence of alcohol in 44%
of all violent incidents.
(BCS survey data)
Alcohol is a contributory
factor in domestic
violence incidents in
about 50% of cases (BMA)
Annual alcohol-related costs
of crime and public disorder
(England) = £7.3 billion (BMA)
Fact: alcohol costs the taxpayer a lot of money
Workplace costs:
£6.4 billion (BMA)
Health costs: estimated
£1.7 – 2.8 billion (BMA)
“Alcohol abuse… costs
the taxpayer around
£20 billion each year”
(Home Office
Press release 2004)
ONS: Poisoning Deaths
ONS poisoning deaths England and Wales in 2008
10000
9000
8000
7000
Fact:
alcohol can
cause death.
6000
5000
9031
4000
3000
2000
1000
897
0
Alcohol
Opiods
86
Cocaine
29
Amphetamine
15
Ecstasy
0
Solvents
Fact: many more deaths are alcohol related
North West Public Health Observatory Report drug
related deaths England and Wales in 2008
120000
112377
100000
Alcohol is the third
leading risk factor for
Premature death…in developed
Countries after tobacco and blood
Pressure (WHO 2002)
80000
60000
40000
27000
20000
4976
575
384
246
227
Cocaine
Amphetamine
Solvents
Ecstasy
0
Nicotine
Alcohol
Opiods
Fact: The UK alcohol industry spends approximately
£800 million each year on marketing (BMA)
Think:
Is it responsible to
advertise a potentially
harmful and addictive
substance?
“A substantial body
of research has found
that alcohol advertising
and promotion influences
the onset, continuance
and amount of alcohol
BMA ‘Under the
Influence’ (2009)
Task: study the sequence of advertisements and list as many different
marketing strategies as you can e.g. who is being targeted and how?
• Attach media clip (A1) here.
In what other ways
is alcohol
promoted?
Fact: In the UK, alcohol marketing and promotion is
regulated via voluntary codes governing creative content.
The codes depend on the public making a complaint to the
Advertising Standards Authority (ASA)
Crime - Counting the Cost
The Codes:
Advertisements must
not imply that alcohol
can improve any
type of performance.
Do you think that these
codes are adhered to?
What are the weaknesses
in the system of voluntary
regulation?
Must not be likely to
appeal to people under 18.
This ad’ was withdrawn by the ASA following complaints
Fact: The Portman Group are the alcohol
industry marketing self-regulatory body.
Crime - Counting the Cost
The Portman Group is a
trade group composed
of alcoholic beverage
producers and brewers
in the UK.
“We are concerned solely with
the social responsibility issues
surrounding alcohol”
The Portman Group
Fact: In the UK, through stakeholder groups like the
Drinkaware trust, the alcohol industry assists Governments
in providing public health communications.
Crime - Counting the Cost
Look closely at the
Drinkaware slogan below –
what message does it convey?
“it is the logic of the market
that informs Governmental
policy on alcohol”
(Hayward and Hobbs 2007)
“As with tobacco, putting the
fox in charge of the chicken
coop – or at least putting
him on a par with the farmer
is a dangerous idea”
(BMA – ‘Under the
Influence’ 2009)
What might the problem be with
partnership working and industry
funded health education?
• www.drinkaware.co.uk
•
Task: create a storyboard for an advertisement aimed
at young people which challenges myths and raises
awareness of the true physical, psychological, social
and economic impact of alcohol use.
Crime - Counting the Cost
Assessment criteria:
A
Your advertisement is imaginative and thought-provoking. You
demonstrate a clear engagement with issues raised in the lesson.
B
Your advertisement is well-structured and informative. Your work
reflects a good understanding of key points raised in the lesson.
C
The information in your storyboard is fairly well organised and
there is some relevance to the content.
D
Your work lacks effort and is poorly structured and/or presented.