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Absolut controversy: liquor ads return to network TV

Charles Marwick, Washington, DC

This article originally appeared in BMJ USA

When NBC announced last December 13 that it would accept liquor advertisements on national television, the reaction was predictable. The Distillery Spirits Council of the United States, a national trade association, called the move "a positive day for the spirits industry." The American Medical Association (AMA) called it "shockingly irresponsible."

Advocacy groups concerned about excessive drinking criticized it. Millie I Webb, national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, called for "higher standards of responsibility in advertising beer, wine, and liquor." George A Hacker, Alcohol Policies Project Director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), immediately described NBC's decision "shameless." Then, within days, CSPI reported that 59% of survey respondents were concerned about NBC breaking its 50-year, self-imposed ban on showing liquor ads on TV. Hacker maintained that NBC's decision "flies squarely in the face of public opinion."

Local television and cable channels have been running hard liquor advertisements since 1996. But NBC's recent announcement opens the door to such advertising on the major networks. However, there are some restrictions: Products can only be promoted on programs aimed at adult audiences; advertisements can run only between 9 PM and 11 PM eastern standard time; the actors in the commercials must be at least 30 years old; professional athletes cannot endorse products; and for the first four months advertisements must be restricted to messages that urge viewers to drink responsibly.

CSPI's Hacker said that these restrictions are "ludicrous, they're all fraud." He added, "These responsibility messages are plainly branded. They have that big Smirnoff logo on them. In one, there's even a Smirnoff vodka bottle in the background. They are just thinly disguised ads." Other criticism of the guidelines came from the AMA's chair-elect, J Edward Hill, MD. He said that no one can be certain that viewers younger than 21 years will not watch television after 9 PM.

Dr Hill, along with many others, is worried about how viewing hard liquor advertisements will affect young people. He pointed out the dangerous effects of underage drinking in a letter to the other three major networksCBS, ABC, and Foxwho so far have not followed in NBC's footsteps. Citing various studies, Dr Hill noted that more than 6000 teenagers died in alcohol-related automobile crashes in 2000; over 50% of eighth-grade students and 80% of 12th grade students had tried alcohol; and, most ominous, more than 40% of those who begin drinking as teenagers will develop alcohol dependence.

Since the weeks after NBC's announcement, opposition has been broadening. The AMA is working on a Web siteliquorfreetv.comas a route for sending letters of protest to NBC and the sponsors of the ads. Two members of Congress, Representatives Frank Wolf (R-VA) and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), said they would consider proposing legislation if NBC does not reverse its decision to run hard liquor ads. Hacker said that CSPI had been talking to the staffs of Senators Ernest Hollings (D-SC), Joseph Biden (D-DE), and John Kerry (D-MA). They "have expressed concern and are willing to work with us to reverse the NBC action," Hacker said. "Once Congress reconvenes, I think you're going to hear a lot more. The fight on this issue has only just begun."