DISCUS Missed the Point, Says the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth 4/3/2003
From: Nicole King of the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, 202-687-0884 WASHINGTON, April 3 -- The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at Georgetown University sent the following letter to The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States today in response to the Council's misinterpretation of the latest CAMY report, Radio Daze: Alcohol Ads Tune in Underage Youth, which shows that underage youth heard more radio ads for distilled spirits and beer than adults in 2001 and 2002. April 3, 2003 Dr. Peter Cressy President and CEO, Distilled Spirits Council of the United States 1250 I Street, N.W. Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20005 Dear Dr. Cressy: Thank you for telling us the obvious: We agree there are more legal-age adults in the U.S. than underage youth, 12-20. By your failure to take into account exposure as measured by industry standards, you have misinterpreted our data. Our analysis tells a parent that her child is hearing more alcohol ads than she is. Your misanalysis-that all adults in the U.S. hear more ads than all the children-will be of little comfort to her. For our radio report, the Center used the industry-standard methodology, reviewed by leading experts in the media research field, of comparing Gross Ratings Points (GRPs) delivered to underage youth versus Gross Ratings Points delivered to legal-age adults. That analysis gives an accurate picture of what is happening in the marketplace. We calculated the amount of advertising exposure based on the general population and the population in the particular radio listening audience. This calculation, using GRPs, is the standard for comparing advertising exposure, and is intended to avoid misinterpretations such as yours. We disagree with you that the alcohol industry is doing all it can to protect underage youth from the real risks and consequences of drinking as long as the industry effectively delivers more of its advertising to underage youth than to legal-age adults. And in the case of radio advertising, the distilled spirits industry delivered 14 percent more radio advertising to underage youth than to adults in the 2001-2002 sample analyzed by the Center. Please call if you have any further questions. Sincerely, Jim O'Hara Executive Director |