Should alcohol advertising be banned?

Question

Alcohol is a recreational drug like cannabis or cocaine. Just because it's legal doesn't seem a legitimate reason to allow it to be advertised. There is a case for legalising some or all recreational drugs but I've never heard anyone advocating that advertising them should be allowed.

If we banned alcohol advertising, wouldn't it only be the big corporations who would suffer, rather than individual citizens?

After all, if alcohol advertising works, it shouldn't be allowed, and if it doesn't, there's no reason for it.

If individual companies want to increase market share, they could make their produce more attractive rather than spending money on persuading people to buy it. Wouldn't word get around quickly?

And if one country banned alcohol advertising, maybe others would follow (like the ban on smoking in restaurants etc.)

What do you thinl?

Answer 1

I think it should be, tobacco advertising is already banned in a lot of places although OTOH the alcohol industry has tended to have more social responsibility than the tobacco industry.

But anyway, the idea that alcohol is some kind of social lubricant really needs to be squashed and a ban on such advertisements would be a good start.

Answer 2

I believe that it should be banned,atleast on tv anyway.Alcohol advertising definately works and there is a major alcohol problemin our society.I had a big alcohol problem and i now realise how bad it actually is. I am totally against drugs and alcohol.There is no need for it and life is so much better without it.I have never felt better,now that i am totally sober. There needs to be a ban on it and these candy flavored lollie water girlie drinks being sold need to be removed.Alcohol abuse in young girls is upto like 14% in perth.absolutely unacceptable.I don't get it,people just wat to drink all the time.Makes me sick..

Answer 3

So many questions, so I'll think I'll just try answering the first one.

Alcohol is the second most harmful drug in the country (behind nicotene), and I think anything that can be done to minimise the damage caused should be done.

Accepting that it is too instrinsically linked into british culture, and too much of a tax pot of gold for the government, it will never be banned (at least not in my lifetime), so in the meantime we should ban adverts.

Its hypocritical for the Government to encourage people not to drink whilst at the same time allowing companies to tell us to do the complete opposite.

I knwo they have tried to regulate the adverts by forcing them to say 'please drink responsibly' in the small print but this has little or no effect and just sends a confusing hypocritical message.

Answer 4

i think it should advertise the " real " things that happen in bars,, OK you get all gussied up,, stick on your best smelling cologne / perfume , and head to the bar,,at the beginning of the night you scope out the potentials,,put them in your classes of cute , not cute ,,you get a few beers / shots/ some wine,, whatever flowing in your system and then buy the end of the night you end up going home with someone that you would never dream of being with in the daylight,,,along with the possibility of spending half the night in the john either cleaning up puke and hugging' the toilet or looking in the mirror and asking yourself why???? think about it,,,how many people do you see in a bar that actually look like the one's in the commercials? make them real people,,, one's with the beer guts, and have them looking at the camera with there eyes glazed over and slurring there speech saying ' come on baby,, I can rock your world,,, but they won't because that TRUTH won't sell their product

Answer 5

i don't think it needs to be banned but i do think it needs to be advertised more discriminately than it is -- not to young people, either by advertising during shows they might watch or by gearing it to appeal to them

i drink, and don't think there's anything wrong with it because i do it in moderation, 2 drinks is the very very most i ever have at a time, and go quite awhile in between drinks (like weeks usually)

Answer 6

I don't think advertising is needed. People know where to buy booze. But I'm not sure how they'd go about banning it, with all the "authorities" being pretty much in the corporations' pocket as it is.

Answer 7

They don't allow cigarettes to be advertised. Why should alcohol be? On the other hand, we should be allowed to make our own choices and not be forced to do what someone else considers best.

Answer 8

What, like everything else that is supposed to be bad for us? We are becoming a solcialist country at a high rate of speed and this banning would just add to it.

Answer 9

People like to blame ads & corporations for their poor food & drink choices so they don't have to take personal responsibility and then feel guilt for destroying their bodies.
People will still make poor choices no matter what you ban.

Answer 10

It should not be banned. The fact that it is legal IS a legitimate reason...

Sheesh, where did you get that idea???