Alcohol Advertising and Young People's Drinking: Representation, Reception and Regulation

There is widespread and growing concern about the use of alcohol in society, especially by young people. Although overall volumes of alcohol consumption may be levelling off, the occurrences of excessive or `binge' drinking, especially among teenagers and young adults, are increasingly commonplace. Tackling irresponsible drinking, which is linked to other antisocial behaviour and health problems, has focused attention on the promotion of alcohol by its producers as an important causal factor. This has led to calls for tougher regulation of alcohol marketing, including restrictions on where it can occur and the form it is allowed to take. Empirical research evidence, often emanating from government-funded enquiries and endorsed by health lobbies, has been cited in support of an allegedly primary role played by advertising in triggering interest in and the onset of alcohol consumption among young people and in encouraging regular and heavy drinking. Close examination of this evidence, however, reveals that the research is not always as cut and dried as it may first appear. Methodological weaknesses abound in studies of the purported effects of alcohol advertising and other forms of marketing, and the significance specifically of advertising as an agent that shapes young people's alcohol consumption could be weaker than often thought. This book sets out a review and critique of the evidence on alcohol advertising and marketing effects on young people and considers this evidence in relation to codes of advertising and marketing practice.

Barrie Gunter is Professor of Mass Communications and Head of the Department of Media and Communication, University of Leicester, UK. He has written or edited 50 books and more than 250 refereed journal papers, book chapters, non-refereed articles and technical reports on media, marketing, management and psychology. His research interests include advertising and young people, social marketing effects, the impact of television on public opinion and social behaviour and the use of the Internet across generations. He has recently published books on the Google Generation and on Television versus the Internet. He is currently co-editing a new volume about children and advertising.
Anders Hansen is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Media and Communication, University of Leicester, UK. Much of his research has focused on media roles in relation to health, science and risk communication. He has published widely on media representations of alcohol and alcohol consumption. His recent books include Environment, Media and Communication (2010) and Mass Communication Research Methods (edited four-volume set, 2009). He is currently completing a jointly authored book on media and communication research for Palgrave Macmillan.
Maria Touri is Lecturer in Media and Communications at the University of Leicester, UK. Her research interests are focused on the effects of media representations and framing on social and foreign policymaking. She has done research and published in the area of advertising effects, media-government interactions and new media technologies. She has also worked as a consultant in the area of development communication for the Panos Institute.