Be media savvy
Be media savvy and support members of your families/whanau to also be critical of the advertising they are being exposed to. You can do this by being informed and questioning media content, not just alcohol-related content, and being open to discussing it.
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Remember that advertisements and promotions are just that, and it’s OK to determine for yourself how much they influence your life. |
Screen time can influence young people's attitudes and expectations regarding alcohol. Consider negotiating limits and boundaries on screen time. Most importantly, talk with your young people about what they see in their media environment. For more information about media influence on adolescents, please click here. |
Please click here to learn how the alcohol industry is marketing to young people on social media. |
Support your children and teens to learn important life skills (age appropriate) such as critical thinking, making decisions, resisting peer pressure. Encourage them to ask questions of the media in their environment:
- What are the messages?
- What is the motivation behind the messages?
- Why are the messages constructed this way?
- Who is being targeted?
- Is the message credible?
- Am I being played?
Asking hard questions about media messages in your environment helps you and your family to understand, and to have more power in how you receive these messages. You will have more of a choice in accepting, questioning, resisting, or rejecting messages in your environment.
Limit exposure to alcohol products in the home
As much as possible, try to make your home an alcohol free zone – you could store alcohol out of sight, drink less often at home, refrain from drinking in front of children. You could consider minimising the amount of alcohol branded products in your home such as caps, T-shirts, and other items carrying alcohol logos.
Limit exposure to alcohol advertising in the home
As much as possible, limit children and young people’s exposure to adult programming and events. These commonly contain alcohol advertising.
To make a complaint about alcohol advertising on TV,/radio/internet etc, click here. To make a complaint about alcohol within TV programming, click here.
Talk to your elected representatives about the need to provide more protection from alcohol advertising.
For more ideas and tips for how to reduce the exposure to alcohol in the home, please check out the following sections: