Hooked by design: how social media fuels alcohol harm
About this episode
The episode discusses how social media and digital marketing strategies contribute to alcohol harm, featuring insights from Professor Nicholas Carah.
On this month’s Alcohol Alert podcast, we spoke to Professor Nicholas Carah about the fast-evolving world of digital alcohol marketing - and why it matters. As debates intensify globally around social media regulation and even bans for young people, the conversation couldn’t be more timely. Professor Carah explains how digital platforms have transformed marketing into something far more powerful and personalised: “The more people participate, the more data they generate… you get this loop on digital that you didn’t have in earlier forms.” He also highlights the risks of highly targeted advertising for addictive products, noting that these systems are: “built to tune into who are the high-volume consumers and show them more ads.” The episode explores how this intersects with rapid delivery services, regulation challenges, and harm. Later this year, IAS will be publishing a film on digital alcohol marketing, continuing to shine a light on this critical issue. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit instalcstud.substack.com
People in this episode
Guest: Professor Nicholas Carah
Topics covered
- digital alcohol marketing
- social media regulation
- targeted advertising
- addictive products
- consumer data
- regulation challenges
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Institute of Alcohol Studies
More episodes of The Alcohol Alert Podcast
- Reduced consumption of supermarket alcohol, tobacco, gambling, and confectionery would be unequivocally good for the UK economy
- Humanising Healthcare’s Conversation Café: transforming medical education
- Plans to reduce drink-drive limit in England and Wales
- Government licensing reform sparks concerns over public health and local accountability
- Alcohol harm: A hidden productivity crisis in the UK workforce
- Developing a roadmap for tackling alcohol harm in the UK
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Alcohol Alert Podcast podcast page.