Prevention Video for Parents Hosted by Meryl Streep to Be Released December 1

National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Dependence
Friday, 18 October 1996

"What Should I Tell My Child About Drinking?", a new prevention video for parents developed by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD) will be released on December 1, 1996.

Hosted by Academy Award-winning actress Meryl Streep, the video offers viewers advice both about good parenting and how to discuss alcohol. Actors performing in a series of believable family situations make this valuable information easily accessible to parents who need an introduction to an often difficult subject.

"Too much of the material that advises parents about discussing alcohol with their children is compromised by the fact that the alcoholic beverage industry produces and disseminates it as a public relations exercise," said NCADD president Paul Wood, PhD. "Our video has the same high production values, but it provides a far more objective overview of drinking and takes a critical look at the role of advertising, a subject that the beer companies and the Century Council refuse to address for obvious reasons."

Divided into two parts, the 45-minute video looks first at the need for parents and other caregivers to take responsibility for discussing alcohol with children, which includes examining their own drinking habits and developing specific rules and consequences for violation of those rules. The second part uses "teachable moments" to instruct parents about how they can initiate alcohol-related conversations with their children when they are likely to hear key messages. For example, in one scene a father analyzes a beer commercial with his sons while they are watching a sporting event on television; in another, a mother, her daughter and her daughter's friend, who are preparing a meal together, talk about how drinking can make girls more vulnerable to date rape.

Produced by Gerald T. Rogers Productions for NCADD with a grant from the American Contract Bridge League Charity Foundation, "What Should I Tell My Child About Drinking?" is part of a prevention program that also includes a facilitator's guide and a brochure of the same name. The program will sell for $59.99.

For more information, or to contact National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Dependence, see their website at: www.ncadd.org