(This week, PR News editors Phil Hall and Courtney Barnes chill their champagne bottles while considering the challenges of doing PR for alcoholic beverages.)
PHIL: Do you know whom I admire? I tip my hat (or raise my glass) to the PR professionals who handle the promotion of all things alcoholic. It is not easy work, trust
me. I once did PR for a winery and it was something of a challenge. There was no problem getting the travel media and local business writers to do profiles of the winery, but
the TV news assignment directors wanted nothing to do with us. I was told they were not allowed to give any TV coverage to a winery. Of course, the winery owner wanted to be on
TV. I am thinking about that experience because this time of the year always shows an excess of alcohol-related news - and it is inevitably negative news, relating to drunk
driving or liquored up brawls. It's enough to make you want to drink your sorrows away.
COURTNEY: Publicizing alcohol does come with its fair share of challenges, and many of them hinge on corporate social responsibility. Alcohol is inherently
controversial thanks to its relationship with drunk driving accidents, abuse and underage drinking, so PR professionals must take care to promote safe consumption habits. Premium
alcohol distributor Diageo sets the best example: EVP Guy Smith ensures that 20% of all public messages focus on social responsibility, debunking the "evils of alcohol"
stigma. Judging from Diageo's example, the best way to handle alcohol PR is through an integrated CSR strategy.
PHIL: I wish more alcohol companies were like Diageo. A study released last week by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth at Georgetown University showed
television advertising by alcohol companies spiked during the past few years. The survey found annual expenditures for alcohol advertising grew from $774 million to $915 million
between 2001 and 2004 and totaled almost $3.5 billion during this period. Most of this was focused on cable television, which attracts more young viewers than the traditional
broadcast networks. The number of beer ads alone was up 113% and beer spending on cable more than doubled: $137 million in 2001 and $211 million in 2004. Not coincidentally,
cable shows with significant teenage audience numbers have been very popular with these advertisers. That's not my idea of CSR.
COURTNEY: And then there's the issue of magazines that advertise for alcohol and have a large number of underage readers, such as Sports Illustrated and
Rolling Stone. But that is advertising, and while it's a relative of PR, they are not one in the same. Public relations practitioners that handle alcohol campaigns need
to be proactive about integrating social responsibility into branding and messaging initiatives. They should take advantage of events like Alcohol Awareness Week and New Year's
celebrations by emphasizing responsibility. Getting this message across highlights a commitment to safe drinking while not missing out on an opportunity to publicize "festive"
beverages. After all, it's not like alcohol is going anywhere. Even an amendment to the United States Constitution couldn't put down libation enthusiasts.
PHIL: Well, the advertising campaigns may appear to be separate and apart from the PR endeavors, but it is interconnected when news such as the Georgetown study comes
out and makes the alcohol industry look predatory in its communications to minors. In this industry, as with any industry, there has to be a consistent communications message.
The PR practitioners will be made to look foolish if it is determined the ad folks down the hall from them are planning and launching campaigns that could jeopardize their CSR-
related efforts. Which reminds me, Courtney...do you want to go out for a drink after work?
(Comments? Questions? Share your opinions with the editors: [email protected] and [email protected].)