Frame analysis of alcohol messaging in u.s. air force base newspapers

Heavy alcohol use among young, enlisted military personnel is of great concern, with junior enlisted personnel representing the largest proportion of service members experiencing alcohol-related consequences and risk behaviors. Since 2006, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has awarded discretionary grants to states as part of the Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws (EUDL) initiative to design and implement a set of interventions using an environmental strategies approach to reduce drinking and associated alcohol-related misconducts among active duty Air Force members. At the end of 2009, EUDL awarded grants to Wyoming, which partnered with F. E. Warren AFB, and Missouri, which partnered with Whiteman AFB. The current study analyzed weekly base newspapers (312 total issues) from F.E. Warren and Whiteman in 2010 (pre-intervention), 2011 (intervention), and 2012 (post-intervention) to gauge whether the EUDL intervention had an impact on media messaging frames related to alcohol use. We coded approximately 600 articles that mentioned alcohol across 15 variables (e.g., section of paper, quotation sources, co-occurrence with other health issues). Across sites, the most common messaging frames were related to negative consequences of alcohol use, such as drunk driving and underage drinking violations. Alcohol was most often mentioned as a secondary focus of articles compared to other health risk behaviors, such as smoking and general health. The number of articles on alcohol increased over time from pre- to post-intervention. Our analyses compare and contrast alcohol frames across intervention sites, and we will discuss public health implications of media frames on alcohol use.