A Content Analysis of Alcohol Marketing on Instagram: Examining Its Contribution to an Australian Aquatic Alcogenic Environment

The alcohol industry uses social media platforms to normalise alcohol consumption in aquatic locations, which can lead to injury and drowning. This research investigated alcohol content posted on Instagram to determine marketing strategies and the extent to which aquatic locations and activities were featured. The Australian Instagram accounts of five alcohol brands were identified across beer, spirits, and cider. The 20 most recent posts were captured for analysis. Each image and caption were saved and coded to examine (1) ‘What marketing characteristics are used by alcohol brands on Instagram?’; and (2) ‘Which aquatic locations and activities featured in the posted Instagram content?’. Ninety-nine posts comprising 176 individual images were identified and analysed. Alcoholic beverages were shown in 53.4% of images. Aquatic locations were observed in 21.6% and aquatic activities in 17.0%. The use of aquatic locations and activities varied significantly by brand (p < 0.001). Advertising themes included associating alcohol with hobbies (29.6%) and mateship (22.7%). Only 21.6% of images contained an age restriction or warning; all accounts employed some form of age-gating. Social media platforms provide alcohol industry actors the opportunity to increase their exposure to young people. Brands used imagery that associated alcohol with fun and mateship and promoted the use of alcohol in aquatic locations.