CDC Leadership

BMJ Editor Fiona Godlee, in an editorial echoing the call of the BMA report to end alcohol advertising, discussed the need for leadership:

Perhaps Tom Frieden, the new head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will take on this battle. Karen McColl reports (doi:10.1136/bmj.b3565) that in his previous role as New York City health commissioner he was known for his willingness to use the law to control health risks. He built a reputation for bold action on smoking and unhealthy eating, in the face of fierce industry opposition.

The CDC has certainly shown important leadership in this area, with the important research of their Alcohol Team and their recent refunding of the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth.

Nonetheless, the US has its own barriers to limits on even the most egregious alcohol advertising, notably the steady effort of activist judges and corporate think tanks to place commercial speech on the same Constitutionally-protected level as political speech.  This perhaps reached its apogee with the statement of U.S. District Judge Donald C. Nugent (regarding a class action lawsuit against alcohol advertisers):

Parents have a right to make fundamental decisions about a child’s upbringing, but they have no legal right to prevent other private parties from attempting to influence their children. [emphasis mine]

Following that statement to its logical conclusion, even if it could be proven that alcohol companies were deliberately targeting children, a parent would be powerless to stop it.

References:

Gostin, L.O. (2002).  Corporate speech and the constitution: The deregulation of tobacco advertising.  American Journal of Public Health, 92(3), 352-355.

Kozinski, A. & Banner, S. (1990). Who’s afraid of commercial speech? Virginia Law Review, 67, 627-653

Provance, J. (2007, July 18).  Court rejects lawsuit over alcohol ads.  Toledo Blade.  Retrieved on September 9, 2009, from http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070718/NEWS02/707180422.