A Brewing Controversy : Beer Makers’ ‘Responsible Drinking’ Ads Push Brands, Critics Say
Say, if it isn’t Larry Bird--the recently retired basketball star--racing up the court in a rough-and-tumble pickup game. But wait a second. This is a TV commercial. What’s the Boston Celtics legend doing in a beer spot?
“Stay in control,” says Bird, looking smack into the camera while seated on a wooden bleacher. “Know when to pass.”
The yet-to-air commercial--sponsored by Miller Brewing Co.--was filmed a few weeks ago behind closed doors inside a Boston-area gym.
“Responsible drinking” commercials like this are suddenly filling the airwaves. Have the beer makers found religion? Hardly, say critics, who contend that this is nothing but a charade by big brewers trying to head off any new legislation restricting their estimated $2-billion annual marketing efforts. One recent study even concludes that these “responsible drinking” ads actually serve to market the individual brands. But the brewers insist that they are simply doing the right thing.
“The beer makers are taking credit for being responsible citizens,” said William DeJong, a lecturer at Harvard University who just published a study that reviewed more than 300 of the beer industry’s “responsible drinking” ads. “But most of the ads are actually designed to promote the brands--and their messages are mixed, at best.”
The study, which was published in December in the Milbank Quarterly, a New York-based public health journal, says that familiar slogans such as Anheuser-Busch’s “Know When to Say When” and Miller’s “Think When You Drink” actually “gloss over or totally ignore important public health messages.” One such message issued by the Office for Substance Abuse Prevention suggests that women limit their consumption to one drink per day, and men to two.
Besides Bird--who declined to be interviewed--Miller recently signed New York Knicks head coach Pat Riley as a “Think When You Drink” spokesman. And Anheuser-Busch--which has Miami Dolphin quarterback Dan Marino in its fold--says it will spend upward of $25 million in 1993 on ads that ask consumers to drink in moderation.
Some critics contend that the public would actually be better served if the brewers’ “responsible drinking” campaigns were taken off the air entirely. “Their slogans are intentionally vague--and often meaningless,” said Jane Kilbourne, a visiting scholar at Wellesley College who created a documentary film about alcohol advertising.
If the beer makers really wanted to show some responsibility, suggests Sut Jhally, an associate professor of communications at the University of Massachusetts, “instead of running the ‘responsible drinking’ ads, they’d overhaul their mainstream campaigns that are clearly designed to get people into the market at younger and younger ages.”
Those who object to the ads said the brewers should not be making “responsible drinking” spots because it is in the companies’ interest to sell beer. Instead, the critics generally support public service spots, such as one that aired over the New Year’s weekend with President-elect Bill Clinton warning drinkers not to drive.
But the major brewers insist that they are doing all that they can, and complain that their outspoken critics are actually neo-Prohibitionists.
“Our Founding Fathers framed the Constitution in a Philadelphia tavern,” said Richard Klemp, vice president of consumer awareness at Miller, which underwrites a designated driver program for sports events at the Los Angeles Coliseum. “The idea that you cannot drink and function in any other department of your life just doesn’t square with reality.”
Anheuser-Busch’s “responsible drinking” ads “have helped the designated driver evolve from someone who was a nerd to someone who is a hero,” said Joe Castellano, vice president of consumer awareness and education at Anheuser-Busch. The firm says it has spent more than $100 million on “responsible driving” ads over the last 10 years--including two spots that aired during the 1992 Super Bowl.
And while critics say the brewers should be more specific about how much beer is too much to drink, executives from the breweries say that is impossible. “It is not that simple,” said Bart Alexander, manager of alcohol issues at Coors. “We recognize there are 80 million beer drinkers in this country, and the majority of them make good beer drinking decisions.”
The major brewers say their moderation ads have played a key role in reducing the highway traffic death rate, which in 1992 was at its lowest rate ever recorded. But most safety officials say the decrease in fatalities is actually because of the growing use of seat belts and tougher law enforcement.
Still, there are some marketing experts who say the messages from the brewers are highly effective. And while critics contend that the look of these ads is often too similar to real beer commercials--and therefore encourages consumption--at least one academic says that’s hogwash.
By airing bar scenes in the moderation ads, said Jay Winsten, associate dean at Harvard and director of the Harvard University Alcohol Project, beer makers are actually attracting the attention of those who most need to see the ads.
One New York ad executive--whose agency creates “Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk” ads for the U.S. Department of Transportation--said that, above all, the “responsible drinking” ads created by the big brewers are raising awareness among consumers. “And if the brands themselves somehow benefit along the way,” posed Ken Olshan, chairman of Wells Rich Green BDDP, “I say, so what?” The beer industry is not only getting a free ride, critics contend, but its ads are confusing consumers along the way. “How can you know when to say when?” asked James Baker, director of the San Diego-based Institute for Health Advocacy, “when you’re already intoxicated?”
Briefly . . .
The Los Angeles agency Fraser & Associates has won the $2-million ad business for Autograf-X, removable vinyl graphic designs for auto customizing by L.T. Funston & Co. of Philadelphia. . . . Los Angeles agency Davis, Ball & Colombatto was handed Los Angeles-based Sanwa Bank’s $3-million account, previously handled by Sacks/Fuller. . . . El Segundo-based Mattel is looking for a third agency in the Los Angeles market to handle an undisclosed assignment of up to $10 million.
