Alcoholism and Drug Abuse

Introduction and Abstract

 Alcohol use disorder is a public health problem, and an important contributor to disability
and death. Alcohol is the seventh leading risk factor for both deaths and the disability-
adjusted life years; about 5.1% of the global burden of disease and injury is attributable to
alcohol. Alcohol use causes not only adverse health effects but also the social and
economic loss to the individual and society. Alcohol use, especially during adolescence, is
linked to many adverse outcomes including road-traffic accidents, neurocognitive
impairment, and the chance of developing dependence.

 One topic of great societal concern, given the potential influence of OTT programs on
viewers, is the presence of messages about alcohol. Worldwide alcohol consumption and
the related problems are on the rise.
 Globally, alcohol is linked to at least 773,600 direct deaths and a multitude of other health
and societal problems.
 In the United States alone, alcohol consumption is directly responsible for 85,000 deaths
including 12,700 vehicle fatalities, and 1,574,000 hospital admissions annually. These
numbers do not truly reflect the full array of negative consequences (e.g., lost productivity,
prevention programs, and healthcare expenditures) related to alcohol consumption.
 Portrayals of alcohol in the media have been linked to the development and maintenance of
beliefs about and attitudes toward alcohol.
 Some studies have shown, for instance, that young people who are more exposed to
positive alcohol portrayals and advertising have more favourable beliefs about drinking, say
they are more likely to drink in the future, and are more likely to consume alcohol.
 Alcohol portrayals in the content of television programs also reinforce existing alcoholic
behaviours. For instance, research has shown that exposing people with high alcohol
dependence to a television program with alcohol scenes made it more difficult for them to
resist the urge to drink heavily

 Many studies have assessed the extent and pattern of the depiction of alcohol in Hollywood
movies Often, alcohol use is portrayed in a positive light without any negative outcomes of
alcohol use. Most of these studies have systematically chosen top-grossing movies and
assessed the proportion of movies and time, in which tobacco, alcohol, and illicit
substances have been portrayed
 Exposure to alcohol in popular movies during adolescence is associated with higher rates
of alcohol use. We aimed to assess the extent and pattern of depiction of alcohol in
different Bollywood and Hollywood series, and to analyse the trends in portrayal of alcohol
over three decades selected for the study

Portrayal of Alcohol in OTT Platforms (Statistics)

Method:

 We selected the top five grossing movies for each year of the three decades selected
(1961–1970; 1981–1990; and 2001–2010).
 Content analysis was conducted for each scene depicting alcohol in the movie.
  We compared quantitative variables across the three decades to assess for any changes in
the portrayal of alcohol and performed qualitative content analysis for the text description of
the context, in which alcohol was depicted in each movie.

Results

 Of the total 150 movies analysed, 135 (90%) movies contained at least one scene depicting
alcohol. Alcohol scenes comprised 7% of the total movie time.
 Majority of the scenes (92.2%, n = 976) showed the substance (alcohol) itself.
 Spirits were the most common alcohol beverages depicted (75.1%, n = 733). Only 7.9% of
scenes (n = 84) depicted alcohol brands.
 About 67% (n = 709) of scenes showed characters consuming alcohol or appeared
intoxicated. Most scenes portrayed hero (n = 253, 35.7%) consuming alcohol. Female
characters were depicted in 7.5% (n = 53) alcohol scenes. The third decade (2001–2010)
had the least proportion of scenes depicting
 Spirits and the highest proportion of scenes depicting beer and wine. Decade three also
had the most proportion of scenes set in clubs, bars, discotheques or restaurants, scenes
with characters of “positive” shade depicting alcohol use, and the scenes portraying heroine
with alcohol use.

Conclusion

There is an increasing trend toward alcohol depiction by positive characters for fun and relaxation,
and toward depiction of low-concentration alcohol such as beer in recent decades. The impact of
changing trend of alcohol depiction on the Indian viewers, especially young audience, has proved
to be negative.
 Qualitative Content Analysis for the 3 Decades with Separate Case Studies

Decade 4 (Kabir singh, udta Punjab)

Decade one: 1961–1970 

In this decade, alcohol was portrayed in two distinct ways.

The first depiction is the use of alcohol to celebrate or party, mainly in homes and to portray the
urban lifestyle of the hero, heroine or their families.

The other depiction is of the character with negative shade (villain or his associates) consuming
alcohol. Alcohol is used to depict his evil nature. Heroines drinking alcohol was not only
discouraged but also looked down upon. Alcohol use by female leads was considered to be
against Indian culture and values.

Movie “Purab Aur Paschim”

 The heroine is shown to consume alcohol because of her upbringing in a Western country
following Western values.
 She stops drinking and smoking after she embraces Indian culture and Indian values. In
some scenes, heroine is shown drinking to deal with cold weather.

Decade two: 1981–1990 

 Here too, most of the movies followed the same trend as decade one. Seven movies had
characters shown to be addicted to alcohol.
 Gambling and violent acts including sexual molestation were associated with alcohol use.
The portrayal of alcohol use by the female leads also did not change significantly in this
decade.

Movies like “Tezab” and “Dill” portrayed young, college-going students drinking beer on
occasion of birthday or to celebrate some occasions.

This decade also had two movies, in which one of the central themes was alcohol. The name of
the first movie “Sharabi” itself means “alcoholic” which had the male lead starting alcohol in
childhood itself and becoming an alcoholic because of deprivation of parental love and attention.
However, the alcoholic protagonist is also shown to be generous and much loved by his
employees and friends.

Similarly, the second movie “Mashaal” has illicit production of alcohol as one of the important
features. In the beginning, the movie shows the male lead, Dilip Kumar, to be a good person and
disliking alcohol use, and Anil Kapoor as a local thug and using alcohol. In the later part of the
movie, Anil Kapoor turns a new leaf and stops using alcohol, while Dilip Kumar turns into a villain,
starts using alcohol and produces illicit alcohol.
Decade three: 2001–2010 

 Alcohol was shown to be consumed in clubs, discos, bars, etc., by protagonists who were
young college students or working men.
 Heroines were also shown to be drinking to socialize and have fun similar to the male
protagonist. The negative portrayal of alcohol by villains was less in this decade.

This decade had one movie, in which alcohol was the central theme – “Devdas.”

 This movie, which is an adaptation of a novel by the same name depicts the lead male
character turning to alcohol in response to his girlfriend married off elsewhere.
 The movie shows the character becomes an “alcoholic” and finally succumb to alcohol.

Analysis Chart of Total Screen time of Alcohol Use in Several OTT Programmes and Movies

Comparison of Positive and Negative Impacts of Alcohol

 Prime-time television series convey mixed messages about alcohol, but positive and
negative messages are communicated differently: the primary, more central, alcohol
message is more often negative but the secondary, more subtle, message is almost
always positive.
 There is therefore a possibility that the positive messages undermine the negative
messages.

At-Risk Youth
 Adolescents  watch approximately 2 hours of television per day, and considering the
frequency that alcohol is portrayed in the plots and commercials of popular shows, this is
concerning.
 Research has shown that youths that are consistently exposed to alcohol advertisements
on TV have an increased likelihood of starting to drink early, or if they are already drinking,
to drink more.
 A study conducted by Boston University that was published in the Journal Studies on
Alcohol and Drugs illustrated this correlation. B
 U researchers surveyed a sample of more than 1,000 American 13- to 20-year-olds who
said they had drank alcohol within the past month. Investigators then asked participants if
they had watched any of the 20 most popular non-sports television shows and how much
they consumed of the 61 alcohol brands showcased in commercials during those shows.
What they found is significant. Underage drinkers who didn’t see any of the alcohol ads only
drank about 14 drinks per month.
 I think the message is that this adds to evidence that alcohol advertising matters in terms of
youth drinking and it demonstrates good support for the idea that alcohol advertising is not
only related to which brands kids might choose to drink, but how much they choose to drink
in total.
 In addition to advertisements, kids that watch their favourite lead characters engage in
substance abuse every week are also more likely to start drinking. Cultivation theory
suggests that by shaping how viewers perceive the real world, frequent portrayals of
alcohol use on television may influence adolescents’ health behaviours.
 Extensive research has demonstrated that more exposure to tobacco or alcohol in
television programming is associated with increased risk of adolescent use of those
products. The portrayals of substance use in the media has shown to influence adolescents
to engage in the same behaviours in effort to emulate their role models.

Case Studies - Series and Shows, impacting people

 The effect of watching these scripted shows in relation to alcohol use is significant. For
example, the show Mad Men  sparked a huge surge in whiskey sales during the first few
years after it premiered. Thanks to John Hamm’s Don Draper ordering it by name in
multiple episodes, the Canadian Club Whiskey became immensely popular after an almost
17-year slump. A spokesperson for Canadian Club Whiskey was even quoted as saying
that the show “had a huge impact on the brand” and that “people are talking about it again.”

 Netflix's "Paik's Spirit," which was released last October, features culinary star Paik Jong-
won and celebrity guests talking about life over intoxicating meals. Han Ji-min, who
appeared as a guest in the second episode, later said in an interview that she felt less
pressure drinking in front of the camera on the show.

"I would have been hesitant to appear in the show if it aired on one of three major
broadcasters. But since it's an over-the-top (OTT) platform, I felt I could be more true to
myself," Han said.

 Tving's "Work Later, Drink Now," which will be renewed for a second season this year,
centres on three drinking buddies who hang out in a bar every day.

"Heavy drinking inflicts damage on the body, but you might want to loosen up a bit while
 drinking, at least once in your life. No one has a perfect life," the drama's screenwriter, Wi
So-young, said.

 "Drinking Friends," a talk show that started last December features celebrities gabbing
over life lessons while consuming drinks with the guests.
 "Local Table," which kicked off in February on MBC, features celebrities traveling, drinking
and eating local food.