Let’s “Kill the Buzz” During National Alcohol Awareness Month
LET’S “KILL THE BUZZ” DURING NATIONAL ALCOHOL AWARENESS MONTH
A 29 percent increase in alcohol-related deaths over four years merits better reporting, says USAPA
April 3, 2025 | Portland, Ore. — As National Alcohol Awareness Month began on the same day as a major dismantling of federal alcohol prevention and regulation programs, the U.S. Alcohol Policy Alliance (USAPA) is calling on all media outlets to both improve and increase reporting on harms caused by alcohol consumption. Amid the uncertainty caused by layoffs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it has never been a better time for the news media to provide more data-driven, balanced reporting about alcohol and the alcohol industry.
“Alcohol is a toxic, addictive carcinogen that kills 178,000 people each year in America and is responsible for more than four million emergency room visits,” says USAPA CEO Mike Marshall. “Big Alcohol spends $1.4 billion annually linking alcohol consumption to every form of happiness imaginable. Until April 1, the CDC, SAMHSA, and the FDA worked to offset this misleading advertising by raising awareness about the negative health consequences of getting ‘buzzed.’ In light of the federal government retreat from public health, USAPA is asking national media to shift away from on-air imbibing, jokes about drunkenness, and tips for day drinking and focus instead on the sober truth about alcohol. Continuing to celebrate and normalize alcohol consumption makes it harder for people to step away from the alcohol use that is killing them.”
Despite former U.S. Attorney General Vivek Murthy’s call for Congress to authorize an update to alcohol-containing beverage warning labels to include a cancer risk warning, Americans continue to watch the hosts of national morning television shows celebrate with alcohol, joke about excessive consumption, encourage day drinking for moms, and more.
“Members of the news media have a responsibility to inform the public,” adds Marshall. “We would never see a TV reporter snorting a line of cocaine or shooting heroin to celebrate a holiday the way we watch them ‘splitting the G’ on St. Patrick’s Day. And, yet, alcohol kills more people every year than all drug overdoses combined. It's time to report on alcohol consumption following the same norms as reporting on cigarette smoking: it's legal and socially acceptable, but thoroughly unhealthy for individuals and their families.”
During National Alcohol Awareness Month, USAPA urges the news media to consider reporting on the following:
- Legislative battles to raise the price of alcohol (New Mexico, Oregon, and Vermont) and lower the legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) for driving from 0.08 to 0.05 percent (Hawai‘i, Washington, and Connecticut).
- Why the alcohol industry is fighting a revision to the federal dietary guidelines on alcohol consumption.
- How fentanyl gets all the attention when alcohol kills more people each year.
- Trends in decreased alcohol consumption among young people.
- The role the alcohol industry plays in keeping people ignorant of the fact alcohol is a carcinogen.
- Why the alcohol industry targets youth and BIPOC communities with its advertising.
When reporting on alcohol, USAPA asks the media to refer to Ted Alcorn’s “Resources for Reporters,” refrain from promoting alcohol consumption, and:
- Always include a balanced set of facts that educate about the reality of the dangers of alcohol consumption.
- Always utilize non-shaming language.
- Always reference resources for those wanting support to stop drinking.
USAPA understands its message might be seen as a buzzkill, but the truth about alcohol is grounded in science. Alcohol killed 178,000 people in 2021 — a 29 percent increase over the previous four years. Specifically:
- While heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death in the U.S., science tells us alcohol puts heart health at risk, kills more people than strokes every year, and is directly linked to seven different kinds of cancer.
- Consuming alcohol increases the risk of developing at least seven types of cancer, including breast cancer in women.
- Alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer contributing to nearly 100,000 cancer cases and about 20,000 cancer deaths each year in the U.S.
- In 2020 alone, more than 740,000 cancer cases worldwide were attributable to alcohol consumption.
“Our call to action for the news media is a challenge, we know,” concludes Marshall. “We hope to see them rise to it.”
Founded in 2014, the U.S. Alcohol Policy Alliance (USAPA or The Alliance) is the national voice on alcohol policy — working to change the narrative about alcohol, define an actionable agenda for policy-making on all levels, and build a movement driven by the truth that alcohol harms. To learn more about USAPA, including ways to support the organization, visit www.alcoholpolicy.org and follow USAPA on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, and Instagram.
