don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

There is no shortage of bad taste and bad example programming in the media, particularly television. What, if anything, can a wellness-oriented person do about it, besides not watching? Not much, but there are a few other possibilities, none of which seems very promising in the "will it do any good" department.

I thought about this because my fellow health educators just became aware of a new television show that should contribute mightily to the dumbing down of America as well as the destructive tendencies of some folks already on a downward lifestyle spiral. I refer to the "World Beer Games," a mindless program developed by the producers of News Corporation for an FX cable-TV network, which was described in several newspapers recently, including the Wall Street Journal (May 31, 2002.) Besides getting sloshed in competitive ways, the show is expected to attract the desired youth audience by appealing with lowbrow humor, voluptuous cheerleaders in wet t-shirts and varieties of silly costumes (sparkling pastel shorts on the ladies, for instance.) Surely this program can't be of much interest to the sophisticates who read and subscribe to the Journal.

This nightmare program features college age kids from many nations (the idea: Be patriotic -- cheer on the home team with flags, anthems and other Olympian folderol) for the distinction of -- are you ready for this?--"world's best beer nation."

Jeez -- I don't know about you but I surely would be filled with pride to see the red, white and blue waving over the ramparts on that one. I can see the bumper stickers -- "God Bless America, world's best beer nation." We may not lead the world in low infant mortality rates but we have the guys and gals who can chug sixteen ounces of beer faster than any other country -- without dribbling. I would think we'd want England to have that distinction.

Who, besides a back lot production company, supports this kind of thing with advertising? Would you believe Hooters (of Canada?) Other sponsors are Interbrew (Labatt Blue and Rolling Rock beers) and Beer.com, which of course you probably have not heard about -- that is one reason they produce shows like this -- brand recognition is vital. You don't think Coors would want to be identified with a beer drinking Olympics, do you?

The producer explained, "The show is about celebrating beer culture and the fun of beer." To cover themselves in a legal sense, they will run warnings against drinking and driving! Gee -- won't that take all the fun out of it?

Naturally, there are the spoilsports who have some problems with this kind of programming. For example, the leader of the Alcohol Project at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) in Washington, D.C. was quoted in one story: "Glorifying beer drinking is just another example of irresponsible marketing and promotion of beer consumption." Yes, but I suspect the producers and advertisers considered that interpretation and concluded, "Great -- that will help our market share!"

Joseph Califano, the former secretary of HEW in the Carter years and current chairman of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse sees the World Beer Games as a good reason why the US should prohibit beer advertising on TV.

What do YOU think? Is this show an example of a price too high to pay for freedom of speech applied to advertising? Is it necessary to allow such ads and shows as World Beer Games (this show is of course just a beer infomercial) that glamorize the drinking of beer and redefine the boundaries of taste and that are too awful to endure?

In the event you ARE part of a youth audience who lives for lowbrow humor, voluptuous cheerleaders in wet t-shirts, pastel shorts on the ladies and opportunities to get sloshed in competitive ways, well, lots of luck. The rest of us can surely find other ways to entertain ourselves and have fun in healthy ways. A special bonus is we won't have to sit though disguised infomercials to do so.

Enjoy, be well and always look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the PHYSICAL DOMAIN under the skill area of lifestyle habits. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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