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A new report from the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY) at Georgetown University indicates that Hispanic 12- to 20-year-olds tend to hear and see more alcohol ads than other youth of the same age.

According to federal surveys, Hispanic young people are more likely to drink and get drunk at an earlier age than non-Hispanic white young people. They are also substantially more likely to report binge drinking in the past two weeks in eighth grade than both white and black youth, and are slightly more likely to do so in the tenth grade. Recent public health research has added to the evidence that exposure to alcohol marketing plays a role in young people's decisions to drink.

During 2003 and 2004, Hispanic youth were exposed to 20% more alcohol ads per-capita in English-language magazines than non-Hispanic youth. CAMY's report also looked at alcohol advertising on English- and Spanish-language radio stations and on the English- and Spanish-language television shows most popular among Hispanic youth. In cities like New York, New York; San Francisco and San Jose, California; and San Antonio, Texas Hispanic youth were more likely to hear ads for alcohol on the radio. They heard 272% more radio advertising per capita for Beck's Beer that year than did 12- to 20-year-olds in general, as well as 194% more for Coors Beer and 78% more for Budweiser. Television programs such as Bernie Mac, Fear Factor, Don Francisco Presenta, Cristina, and The Simpsons regularly had alcohol advertisements.

"Previous research has shown that Hispanic youth are more likely to drink and drink heavily at an earlier age than their peers," said CAMY research director David Jernigan. "Plenty of industries have set their sights on the Hispanic market, but this much alcohol marketing reaching Hispanic young people could have serious consequences."

Katherine Culliton, J.D., policy director of the National Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention (LCAT) said, "The FTC and FCC should monitor this, and the industry should adopt better standards if they really care about the well-being of the Latino community."

In an effort to fight underage drinking, a new and innovative program was recently introduced to Hispanic communities nationwide. The Century Council in partnership with Nickelodeon and an expert panel of respected Hispanic organizations unveiled Pregunte. Escuche. Aprenda. ¡Los niños y el alcohol no mezclan! The program teaches that early and constant communication between parents and children is key to stopping underage drinking. Pregunte provides youth and parents strategies and information that help them start a conversation about the dangers of underage drinking. An adult’s booklet, detailing how to begin and sustain the conversation and to have an impact on kids, will be distributed nationwide.

The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) is proud of Erik Casynn’s work in combating underage drinking. Erik is one of the ten winners of the 2005 Líderes de Hoy essay contest, which allowed young Hispanic leaders to share their perspective on what it means to be a leader in their community. Erik has been working on the City of Longmont (Colorado) Youth Council where he is the Chairman for the Alcohol Awareness Subcommittee. The council realized the need to address underage drinking and joined the local police departments and the Drinking Prevention Coalition in the fight against it. Erik helped hire a professional facilitator who collaborated with the Council to create the “Power of Friendship” presentation for the local youth. This presentation emphasizes the importance of friends in a teenager’s life. Most remarkably, Erik worked on creating an alcohol–poisoning card that teens can carry in their wallets with information about heart and breathing rates during alcohol consumption. Knowing the data concerning Hispanic alcohol use, Erik suggested that the council reach out to the Hispanic community and had the cards translated into Spanish. It is impressive to see what one teenager can achieve in fighting underage drinking.

For information about underage drinking go to
http://www.teen-anon.com/
or
http://www.youthinaction.org/

For more information on the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth and a full text of this report can be found at http://camy.org/research/hispanic1005/.

For more information about The Century Council and Pregunte. Escuche. Aprenda. go to http://www.centurycouncil.org/press/2005/pr2005-10-19.html