ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a brief review of literature illustrating the efficacy of (mobile) alcohol advertising and examines how advertisers, in particular, enlist young people in their efforts to normalise alcohol behaviours. It then turns to discussing links between mobile social media and alcohol consumption. The chapter highlights that far from being exposed uncritically to direct effects of advertisers, young people actively interpret media messages and construct their own online social identity in ways that are not necessarily always compatible with the aims of the alcohol industry. The chapter ends by highlighting public health opportunities afforded by the increasing popularity of mobile media technologies: first, as a means to target key populations through the use of established marketing techniques to promote responsible alcohol consumption patterns. Second, as a research tool which offers the potential to examine vast amounts of real-time data, which may help us gain a greater understanding of alcohol behaviours in both on- and offline contexts.
