One Week Left to Enter FreeTheBowl.com Video Contest

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA (January 18, 2011) – January 24, 2011 is the deadline to enter Marin Institute’s 3^rd annual Free The Bowlä Video Contest. Youth 10-20 years old are encouraged to compete in this action to eliminate exploitative alcohol ads on TV sports programs. This year’s contest calls for 30-60 second original music, dance, rap or spoken word performance counter-beer-ads. The top prize is $1,000.

“Young people are slammed by TV alcohol ads every day of the year,” stated Michael Scippa, Marin Institute’s public affairs director. “But beer ads on TV sports programs, and especially during the NFL’s Super Bowl, are a massive overdose that must be curbed to reduce youth alcohol-related harm.”

Research has shown that the more alcohol ads kids see, the more likely they are to drink, drink to excess and drink more often. In 2009, the Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking reported that 5,000 people under the age of 21 die annually from injuries caused by alcohol. Hundreds of thousands more suffer alcohol-fueled sexual assaults, serious injuries, diseases, and academic failure. Underage drinking costs the U.S. $60 billion annually.

A recent analysis released by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, shows that voluntary industry advertising codes are ineffective. According to the study, youth exposure to alcohol advertising on U.S. television increased 71 percent between 2001 and 2009. The research also pointed to Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Bud Light, a mainstay of Super Bowl advertising, as one of 12 brands targeting youth.

“Foreign-based alcohol corporations spend half a billion dollars annually advertising during TV sports programs,” said Scippa.  “And the holy grail of beer ad venues and revenues is the Super Bowl, where Anheuser-Busch InBev burns beer brands into the developing brains of an estimated 30 million underage football fans. “Free The Bowlä allows youth to say to Budweiser, CBS-TV, and the NFL, STOP EXPLOITING US WITH YOUR BEER ADS!

To enter the contest go to FreeTheBowl.com where you can also view past years’ winning videos, this year’s promotional videos, and find complete information on contest rules and prizes. Contest winners will be announced during the Free The Bowlä 2011 World Premiere, February 3, 2011, at the Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael, California.

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