title: The extent and nature of alcohol advertising on Australian television.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Current alcohol guidelines in Australia recommend minimising alcohol consumption, especially among minors. This study investigated (i) the extent to which children and the general population are exposed to television advertisements that endorse alcohol consumption and (ii) the themes used in these advertisements.
  
  
  METHODS
  A content analysis was conducted on alcohol advertisements aired over two months in major Australian cities. The advertisements were coded according to the products that were promoted, the themes that were employed, and the time of exposure. Advertising placement expenditure was also captured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In total, 2810 alcohol advertisements were aired, representing one in 10 beverage advertisements. Advertisement placement expenditure for alcohol products in the five cities over the two months was $15.8 million. Around half of all alcohol advertisements appeared during children's popular viewing times. The most common themes used were humour, friendship/mateship and value for money.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Children and adults are regularly exposed to advertisements that depict alcohol consumption as fun, social and inexpensive. Such messages may reinforce existing alcohol-related cultural norms that prevent many Australians from meeting current intake guidelines.
authors.affiliation: Health Promotion Evaluation Unit, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. simone.pettigrew@uwa.edu.au
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pettigrew
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pescud
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chapman
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Quester
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000329:Advertising / Q000191:economics* / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000191:economics*; D001315:Australia; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D013690:Television / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends