Conducted among more than 1,000 young people in France, the CIPPAL-ADAM survey reveals massive exposure to alcohol-related content, particularly via social networks. It highlights complex influence mechanisms, at the crossroads of entertainment, algorithms and social norms.
Massive exposure, despite the law
France prides itself on a strict legislative framework, inherited from the Évin law, which firmly regulates alcohol advertising. However, digital reality tells a different story.
According to the CIPPAL-ADAM study, “the exposure of minors to online or audiovisual marketing of alcohol is massive (78% were exposed in the last month)”. Among young adults, this figure rises to 91%.
This gap between the law and practices is largely explained by the evolution of the media. Social networks, which have become omnipresent in daily life, now constitute the main vectors of exposure. The study highlights that “publications by influencers (…) are more noticed by these young people than “traditional” advertising and largely escape regulatory controls” .
In this constantly changing digital environment, advertising no longer looks like advertising. It blends into the content, slips into the stories, invites itself into moments of life. Result: young people do not always perceive it as such.
Behind the screens, an influence that does not speak its name
Faced with this omnipresence, young people are developing reflexes. They scroll, pass, ignore. A form of apparent resistance, almost instinctive. But this vigilance has its limits. Because modern marketing no longer presents itself head-on. It insinuates itself into popular content, carried by familiar figures.
“They’re not really advertisements (…) It’s just a video that makes you want to talk about a specific alcohol. It’s advertising indirectly, but it’s not between two stories” declares one of the boys interviewed.
The study highlights this shift: integrated content – product placements, publications from influencers or simple posts from friends – lowers vigilance. Commercial intent becomes blurred, sometimes invisible.
And yet, the impact exists. Nearly one in five young people admit that an advertisement made them want to try an alcohol (18%), and 16% say they have taken action.
In the testimonies, emotion comes to the surface. Aesthetics, atmosphere, sense of belonging play a key role:
“(…) it arouses a desire to go and taste something in the same setting. (…) these ads can only encourage you to go and taste it and try it out.” admits another 18-year-old.
Little by little, alcohol becomes part of a collective imagination: that of partying, of summer, of friendship. A seductive imagination, difficult to deconstruct.
The paradox of a lucid… but vulnerable youth
What is striking throughout the study is the paradox of perceptions. Young people think they are difficult to influence, while recognizing the overall effectiveness of marketing.
“Advertising is not something that affects me (…) but (…) it can be something very dangerous” admits a young girl interviewed.
This phenomenon, well known to researchers, has a name: “the third person effect”. We believe others are influenced, but not ourselves.
At the same time, young people express a real attachment to protection measures. However, they know them little. Barely 43% of minors know that alcohol advertising is prohibited to them.
And above all, they point to a persistent inconsistency between the rules and their application.
“OK, this law is there, but when is it actually applied?” underlines a 19-year-old boy.
Beyond the digital world, this perception extends to daily reality: easier access to alcohol, rare controls, unimpressive prevention messages.
A question of public health… and society
Behind these figures and these testimonies, a reality emerges: alcohol remains deeply anchored in social norms. It accompanies moments of sharing, structures relationships, sometimes symbolizes the transition to adulthood. Although alcohol consumption is declining among adolescents, it remains widely experienced: more than 80% of 17-year-olds say they have already drunk.
Faced with this, researchers call for renewed vigilance. Not only on explicit content, but on these diffuse, integrated, almost invisible forms of influence. The challenge is now clear: understand how to protect without prohibiting, inform without feeling guilty, and support a generation growing up in a world where advertising no longer speaks its name.