We have examined in depth the advertising strategies alcohol companies employ across a variety of media, as well as other publicity actions such as sponsorships. Though exceptions certainly exist, we have observed a sweeping trend of common disparities in marketing to different genders. Given practically any ad, it is almost always highly evident which gender the alcoholic product is being marketed towards. For women these take a more passive role, and are linked to fruity, feminine “easy to drink”, sweet tastes. For men, the ads imply dominant activism, and tend to be connected with bitter beers, though there is some overlap. Beer is rarely ever marketed towards women, however. It is uncommon to find an advertisement for alcohol that is gender-neutral or intended to question gender stereotypes. Why is gender stereotyping so commonly used as criteria by alcohol ad agencies? This may have to do with advertising companies recognizing sexism in our society and exploiting it for profit, by trying to link their product with a sense of attractiveness towards the opposite gender. In our society, though drinking is common to all age types (save children and many teenagers), it is deeply integrated with the social habits of young adults. Nightlife and alcohol go hand in hand, and this is generally the stage in life where people are most concerned with attracting a mate, rather than achieving professional success, or raising a family.

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