“Free the Bowl” anti-beer ad contest for youth

The Marin Institute is offering prizes (including a MacBook and iPods) for youth age 13-20 who create ads for their Free the Bowl contest:

"Year after year, Anheuser-Busch and the National Football League hide behind weak, ineffectual Beer Institute self-regulatory guidelines to justify exposing youth to exploitive alcohol ads," said Michael Scippa, advocacy director at the Marin Institute. "Big Alcohol turns a deaf ear to our protests, so we want them to listen to compelling messages from young people who resent being targeted as new customers."

Anheuser-Busch is expected to spend up to $19 million on ads during the 2009 Super Bowl.

Deadline for contest entries is Jan. 25. The winner will be announced on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 1. Ads created for the contest will be posted to YouTube. For more details, see www.freethebowl.com.(via Join Together)

According to the Marin Institute, 30 million youth viewed advertising during the 2008 Superbowl--more ads for beer than anything else. Research shows that the more alcohol advertising teens see the more likely they are to drink, and drink to excess. This contest will give beer companies the message that this exploitation of youth must stop.