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Erroneous/Deceptive Alcohol “Facts”
When it comes to information on alcohol, it’s a case of “reader and listener beware.” Newspapers, magazines and TV programs present a deluge of incorrect and misleading information about alcohol. This list exposes many of the most common such problems encountered in the mass media.
Information about erroneous and deceptive alcohol “facts” are arranged here in six categories:
- IGeneral
- Alcohol-Related Traffic Statistics
- Binge Drinking
- Alcohol Advertising and Marketing
- Underage Drinking
- Other Deceptive “Facts”
I. General Articles
- Statistics on Alcohol (Drinking, Driving, Underage, Abuse) Often Misleading
- Government’s “Alcohol Information”
- Alcohol Use and Abuse: How to “Lie” with Statistics
II. Alcohol-Related Traffic Statistics
- “Sixty-Five Percent of all Traffic Deaths are Caused by Drunk Drivers.”
- Alcohol-Related Doesn’t Equal Alcohol-Caused
- DWI/DUI Fatality Statistics Challenge
- MADD is Wrong
III. Binge Drinking
- Many “Binge” Drinkers are Sober
- College Binge Drinking Uncommon
- Binge Drinking and Problem Inflation
- In the News But Incorrect
- Survey Misleads Public
- Responsible Drinkers are Bingers?
- Binge Drinking is Deceptive Term
IV. Alcohol Advertising and Marketing
- “More Alcohol Ads Lead to More Consumption”
- Alcohol Consumption and Density of Liquor Stores
- “Alcohol Merchandise Encourages Underage Drinking”
- A Junk Science Congregation
- JAMA’s Discredited Alcohol Articles
- AMA’s Alcohol Information and Statistics
- AMA Survey of Teenagers Use of Alcoholic Beverages
V. Underage Drinking
- Early Onset of Drinking: What Research Says and What Anti-alcohol Activists Say It Says
- Clearly False “Facts”
- Survey’s Accuracy Challenged
- Parents, Alcohol and Children: The AMA Speaks Out
- Joe Califano and His Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA)
- There They go Again!
- Government Attacks Drinking with Junk Science
- Alcohol Abuse “Guestimates” Aren’t Statistics
- College Drinking and Junk Science
- College Student Alcohol-Related Deaths: 36 or 1,400 Per Year?
- Drunk with Good Intentions
- A Big Lie about Youthful Drinking
- Social Studies that Flunk the Truth Test
VI. Other Deceptions
- “Alcohol is a Poison”
- Alcohol is a Solvent
- Alcohol Research and Statistics: Deceptive Reports (many govt agencies deceive)
- Federal government Research: Can It be Trusted? (Fired company)
- Alcohol Abuse: The Economic Costs
- Alcohol and Sexual Assault: The Connection
- Drinking Alcohol and Domestic Abuse
You can defend yourself against some of the most common deceptive techniques by reading Darrell Huff’s short but classic How to Lie With Statistics. Also very useful is Steven J. Milloy’s Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense Against Health Scares and Scams.
Note: This website receives no benefit of any kind from the sale of these books.
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