Problems That Arise From Alcohol Advertising (Essay Sample)

Problems That Arise From Alcohol Advertising
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Institution
Problems That Arise From Alcohol Advertising
In today’s society, people are in constant exposure to conflicting messages about alcohol consumption. More often than not, most of these persons are the youth and underage children, who are frequently exposed to complex messages conveyed through advertisements via the media and other social platforms. Usually, according to Hastings et al. (2010) the architects of these advertisements unknowingly and indirectly cause countless societal problems that require urgent attention. This treatise will aim at highlighting three chief concerns that emerge as a result of alcohol advertising, namely underage drinking, alcohol over consumption and negative sexual depiction amongst viewers.
The increased exposure to alcohol advertisements, especially through television broadcasts is bound to be the most contributing factor to excessive alcohol usage in the society. Commercials regarding alcoholic brands, according to a scientific research, which are aired especially on sports channels, have been regarded as the most effective means of instigating alcohol abuse. Most cases of premature demises, marital conflicts, incapacitating ailments and many more can be attributed to an uncontrollable dependence of alcohol (Snyder, Milici, Slater, Sun & Strizhakova, 2006). Other media such as magazines and billboard displays also play a significant role in perpetuating alcohol abuse especially gin, vodka and whiskey. People with alcohol dependence problems also tend to endure other social effects such as bankruptcy and domestic violence.
Another major issue of concern that needs dire attention is the sexual imagery that is usually portrayed in these advertisements in most media platforms. This raises an ethical and moral alarm, as these advertisements depict a stereotypical and racy society. Normally, the target audience of these advertisements, the youth generation, often find themselves in conflict with their personalities and body figures (Grenard, Dent & Stacy, 2013). Most of these advertisements consist of scantily dressed young females engaging in content regarded within the moral and ethical bracket as controversial. Young women and men find themselves comparing their bodies to those of the models in the adverts and end up perceiving their bodies as inadequate. This according to Gorg, leads to a dysmorphic syndrome known as Dysmorphophobia, which involves an individual perceiving their body as imperfect or to some extent defective. In extreme cases, the individual tends to showcase hostility towards their own body (Hastings et al., 2010).
Another problem that is indisputably and to some extent the most concerning is the unyielding increase in underage drinking. Majority of countries such as the United States among others have set the legally permitted drinking age to 21 years. However, it has been identified that many young people begin drinking at a much younger age and progressively turn into heavy drinkers by the time they reach the legal age. Colleges and universities, which permit splurge drinking and wild fraternity parties, also promote alcohol abuse. Majority of these students fall under the teenage category and are provoked by most of these adverts. They thus end up overindulging in alcoholic drinking sprees consequently messing up their college lives (Snyde...