ARAPO Updates

October 2005

ARAPO Recognition Award

• Do you know of someone who has written a letter to a newspaper about how alcohol advertising influences kid’s choices surrounding alcohol use?
• Do you know a student or teacher who has brought other classmates together to complain about an inappropriate advertisement in the media?
• Do you know of a community group or business that refused to allow alcohol sponsorships?

It’s time to start recognizing those students, teachers, businesses, and community groups who are working to make a difference in their communities by refusing to allow the alcohol industry to negatively influence the choices of individuals, particularly those of young people. The ARAPO Recognition Award is a new initiative and has been created to recognize an individual or group who has contributed significantly to reduce the impact of alcohol advertising. Awards will be given for work in a variety of areas, including: education, community initiatives, policy development or change.

A presentation of the award will occur in February 2006 at the FOCUS-ODAP symposium. The successful candidate or group will be recognized and presented with a monetary award to go towards continued efforts. To nominate someone or a group for this award check out the ARAPO Recognition Award on our website or contact the ARAPO Coordinator for more details.

Hot off the Press – New Research in Alcohol Advertising in Public Policy

The Center for Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) specifically monitors the activities of the promotion and advertising of alcohol products and how it negatively impacts public health and safety. In September 2005, CAMY published a Special Section in the Journal of Public Health and Policy called the Global Alcohol Marketing and Youth - Public Health Perspectives, containing up-to-date information about the current issues in alcohol advertising and public health that affect the world globally. Some articles include:

• Editors' Introduction: Alcohol Marketing And Youth - Public Health Perspectives [PDF]
  Written by: David H Jernigan & James F Mosher
  

  This special section focuses on a critical aspect of youth drinking - alcohol marketing and young people - examining the alcohol industry's sophisticated marketing techniques, their global reach and their impact on young people. Its purpose is to stimulate discussion and debate, public health research, and policy reform.



• Alcohol Marketing and Youth: The Challenge for Public Health [PDF]
  Written by: David A Kessler
  

  Dr David Kessler, a pediatrician who has advocated for the health of children throughout his career, provides a thoughtful perspective on the research presented in this special section. He concludes with a challenge: we as parents, public health professionals, and policy makers can do a better job protecting our children from global alcohol marketing.



• Alcohol Marketing and Young People's Drinking: A Review of the Research [PDF]
  Written by: Gerard Hastings, Susan Anderson, Emma Cooke & Ross Gordon
  

  A growing body of survey research shows a significant link between young people's exposure to alcohol marketing and their subsequent drinking behavior.



• Alcohol Advertising and Youth: A Measured Approach [PDF]
  Written by: David H Jernigan, Joshua Ostroff & Craig Ross
  

  Commercially-available databases permit public health researchers to compare the exposure of young people and adults to alcohol advertising, and to show that much of the advertising is where youth are more likely per capita to see it than adults. A proportional threshold for youth audiences could prevent this youth "overexposure" from happening.



• Flavored Alcoholic Beverages: An International Marketing Campaign that Targets Youth [PDF]
  Written by: James F Mosher & Diane Johnsson
  

  Sweet, relatively low-alcohol content beverages are now marketed globally, and have been found in several countries to be particularly appealing to young 'entry-level' drinkers. What can be done to limit their appeal to young people?



• Regulation of Alcohol Marketing: A Global View [PDF]
  Written by: Sally Casswell & Anna Maxwell
  

  Public health advocates need a new framework for and an international approach to the regulation of alcohol marketing in order to keep up with the growing complexity and sophistication of new marketing techniques with particular appeal to young people.



• Trade Treaties and Alcohol Advertising Policy [PDF]
  Written by: Ellen Gould
  

  Provisions in existing and pending agreements on international trade threaten the ability of governments at all levels to regulate alcohol marketing to youth. Alcohol should not be treated as an ordinary commodity in trade agreements.

These articles can be accessed free of charge from the Journal of Public Health and Policy website.

ARAPO gratefully acknowledges the support of the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for its programming.

ARAPO is the host of APN's Alcohol Advertising Information Pack.