Time Trends and Demographic Differences in Youth Exposure to Alcohol Advertising on Television

OBJECTIVE. To examine trends in youth exposure to alcohol advertising on television across different demographic groups. METHODS: We used television ratings data on alcohol advertisements to examine trends in exposure between September 1998 and February 2002. Further, we explored the differences in exposure across demographic groups by examining group-level alcohol ad exposure across specific networks, program types, and times of day. RESULTS. We found that boys were more exposed than girls and African-Americans are more exposed than Whites. Moreover, the race differential appeared to be increasing over time, whereas the gender differential appeared to increase with age. Differences in viewing patterns across race and gender contributed to the observed differences in exposure to alcohol advertising on television. CONCLUSIONS. These results provide guidance in identifying comparative vulnerabilities in exposure to alcohol advertising on television, and can aid in the development of strategies to inoculate youth against those vulnerabilities.