TABLE 2.
Health-Related Sections of the BI's and DISCUS'S Code of Responsible Practices for Beverage Alcohol Marketing and Advertising and Examples of Violations of the Codes: United States, 2008-2010
| Select BI or DISCUS Voluntary Codes | Agency | Violations, No. (%) | Examples of Violations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not rely on sexual prowess or sexual success as a selling point for the brand. Accordingly, materials should not contain or depict: | |||
| Graphic or gratuitous nudity | BI/DISCUS | 1 (<1) | Cartoon depictions of Polaroid pictures of naked women in sexual positions. 3am Vodka. |
| Overt sexual activity | BI/DISCUS | 2 (<1) | Cartoon depictions of couples and others in various active sexual positions while drinking from 750-ml alcohol bottles. 3am Vodka. Only torsos are visible: a man with no shirt is unhooking a topless woman's bra while they are in an embrace. “Reveal the purity.” Iceberg Vodka. |
| Promiscuity | DISCUS | 1 (<1) | Cartoon depictions of couples and others in various active sexual positions while drinking from 750-ml alcohol bottles. 3am Vodka. |
| Sexually lewd or indecent images or language (DISCUS) or lewd or indecent language or images (BI) | BI/DISCUS | 9 (<1) | Cartoon depictions of couples and others in various active sexual positions while drinking from 750-ml alcohol bottles. 3am Vodka. Cartoon depictions of Polaroid pictures of naked women in sexual positions. 3am Vodka. Bellboy with a sly grin holding a tray of Effen Vodka. Caption: “Everyone enjoys Effen in the penthouse.” Effen Vodka. A woman reapplying lipstick after an implied act of oral sex on a man. Belvedere Vodka. “Effen is a five-letter word.” Effen Vodka. “Great Effen taste.” Effen Vodka. “Share Effen cheer.” Effen Vodka. “Taste. Seduce your senses. Effen is a five-letter word.” Effen Vodka. “Tempt. Fruit. Savor.” Effen is a five-letter word. Effen Vodka. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not degrade the image, form, or status of women, men, or of any ethnic, minority, sexually oriented, religious, or other group. | DISCUS | 10 (< 1) | Cocktail waitress wearing 1970s Playboy bunny costume including rabbit ears, a collar, and rabbit tail while working. Playboy Spirits. (3 versions) Man looking down on woman playing pool, as if at an object. “See how the night plays out. Always worth it.” Bud Light. A woman reapplying lipstick after an implied act of oral sex on a man. Belvedere Vodka. “If you raise your pinky, we don't know you.” Foster's Premium Ale. Women scantily dressed in French maid outfits as trophies for a cut-out man. Captain Morgan. Patron Tequila is a “PMS Patch, Anticuddling Device.” Patron Tequila. Image of 3 pairs of women's naked legs up to upper thighs wearing high heels with the caption: “Meet Miss Russia. And her friends. In Russia.” Russian Standard Vodka. Scan a 2-dimensional barcode with your phone and get an image of Playmate, Miss July. “Scan the Ad. Get the Girl.” Hornitos Tequila. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not depict situations in which beverage alcohol is being consumed excessively or in an irresponsible manner. | BI/DISCUS | 4 (<1) | If your flight Is delayed, have a Malibu cocktail and then jump on the luggage belt to surf on moving luggage; use the courtesy telephone to announce your “party,” and jump on restaurant tables to dance. Malibu Rum. On laundry day, load your clothes onto a skateboard and ride down the street or “down the stairs” with laundry between your legs. Sip Malibu cocktails while sitting on the washing machine; “throw caution to the wind and use an empty washer” to create a foam party at the Laundromat “but make sure you keep those Malibu cocktails clear of the suds.” Malibu Rum. Cartoon depictions of couples and others in various active sexual positions, dancing, while drinking from 750-ml alcohol bottles. 3am Vodka. Circus act of 2 people standing on either end of a bicycle while balancing drinks and pouring alcohol between them. Fat Tire Ale. |
| Beverage alcohol products should not be advertised or marketed in any manner directed or primarily appealing to persons below the legal purchase age. | BI/DISCUS | 4 (<1) | Sponsorship of historically African American universities and colleges. Coors Light. (x2) Highlighting a college fraternity house. Malibu Rum. Image of girl who looks <21 y, lying on the beach with her young boyfriend. Daily's Cocktails. |
| To help ensure that individuals in beverage alcohol advertising are and appear to be above the legal purchase age, models and actors employed should be a minimum of 25 y, substantiated by proper identification, and should reasonably appear to be aged 21 y and older. | BI/DISCUS | 8 (<1) | Young girl as lingerie model. Budweiser Select. Image of girl who looks <21 y, lying on the beach with her young boyfriend. Daily's Cocktails. Young girls doing ballet. Grande Absente. Group of friends carrying beer down the beach. Bud Light Lime. Group of friends lying on the beach. Leblon. Two young women and a young man holding beer cans with ads for music festivals. Budweiser. (x2) Young girl with an orange in her mouth showing her “O-Face.” Three-O Vodka. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not portray beverage alcohol being consumed by a person who is engaged in, or is immediately about to engage in, any activity that requires a high degree of alertness or physical coordination. | BI/DISCUS | 3 (<1) | Woman in the corner of a boxing ring holding a 750-ml bottle of Wide Eye Schnapps, being coached by male boxer, as if about to fight. Wide Eye Schnapps. Circus act of 2 people standing on either end of a bicycle while balancing drinks and pouring alcohol between them. Fat Tire Ale. If your flight is delayed, have a Malibu cocktail and then jump on the luggage belt to surf on moving luggage; use the courtesy telephone to announce your “party” and jump on restaurant tables to dance. Malibu Rum. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should contain no claims or representations that individuals can attain social, professional, educational, or athletic success or status as a result of beverage alcohol consumption. | BI/DISCUS | 1 (<1) | 4.0 oz beer = clown; 12.0 oz beer = aging rock star; 25.4 oz beer = secret agent. Foster's Beer. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not employ religion or religious themes. | BI/DISCUS | 1 (< 1) | “Mr. Jack Daniel was NO SAINT. But he did start something of a religion.” Jack Daniel's Whiskey. |
| Beverage alcohol advertising and marketing materials should not imply illegal activity of any kind. | BI/DISCUS | 7 (< 1) | On laundry day, load your clothes onto a skateboard and ride down the street or “down the stairs” with laundry between your legs. Sip Malibu cocktails while sitting on the washing machine; “throw caution to the wind and use an empty washer” to create a foam party at the Laundromat “but make sure you keep those Malibu cocktails clear of the suds.” Malibu Rum. If your flight is delayed, have a Malibu cocktail and then jump on the luggage belt to surf on moving luggage; use the courtesy telephone to announce your “party” and jump on restaurant tables to dance. Malibu Rum. Group of friends who appear underage, implying underage drinking, lying on the beach. Leblon. Young girl with an orange in her mouth showing her “O-Face” implying underage drinking. Three-O Vodka. “Live LeSinfully” implying committing sins. LeSin Vodka. Image of girl who looks < 21 y, lying on the beach with her young boyfriend, implying underage drinking. Daily's Cocktails. Image of a lit string of a bomb attached to a vodka bottle with the caption: “Make your party the bomb.” Atomiq Vodka. |
Note. BI = Beer Institute; DISCUS = Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.