Bud World and my child's world

Gordon B. Lindsay, Ph.D.

Anheuser Busch was an official sponsor of the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. As part of their Olympics promotions they created "Bud World" in a large downtown plaza in Salt Lake City. August Busch IV stated, "The Olympics allow us to gain exposure for Budweiser and Bud Light on a global stage." I wanted to walk on their stage by visiting "Bud World" and made it a father and son's outing by taking along my 10-year-old son, Andrew.

A huge Budweiser billboard next to Bud World welcomed visitors to Salt Lake City. One year ago no alcohol billboards existed in the state of Utah. Times are changing. Security at the 2002 Winter Games was exceptionally tight so Andrew and I had to go through a metal detector and security check to enter Bud World. The lines were long. As we waited I was amazed to see how many children were entering a beer company-sponsored activity. Every kid seemed to be excited as he or she waited to sample the fun that was happening inside. Andrew and I passed through the security check and entered into an attractive world of fun, colour, sports, entertainment and beer. The Christmas lights hung from posts gave Bud World a festive, holiday-like atmosphere. The link between Olympic sports and beer was communicated to Bud World visitors at every turn. There were legions of beautiful hanging posters that featured Winter Olympic athletes under the Budweiser name. Huge, blown-up Sports Illustrated cover pictures featuring past Winter Olympians were everywhere. Sports Illustrated, who benefits in a major way from alcohol advertising, must have been a co-sponsor of Bud World.

For Andrew, going to Bud World was a little bit like being a mosquito in a nudist colony – it was hard to decide where to begin; there were so many fun things to do. His first stop was the skating rink. Most of the people using the rink were little children and teenagers. They were obviously having a good time. Each time a child went around the rink, he or she passed at least a dozen Budweiser or Bud World Party signs. Later on, the nice people from Anheuser Busch cleared the rink and brought out large plastic bowling pins. Anheuser Busch employees used little children on snow saucers as the bowling balls to knock down the pins. The crowd loved it. At night, Anheuser Busch added an additional effect by having lights project the Budweiser logo on the ice.

Next Andrew went to the animal show. He sat in front of a huge stage emblazoned with the name "Budweiser." The show featured the "animal ambassadors" and trainers from Busch Garden or Sea World in San Diego. Penguins, tigers, lemurs, boa constrictors, eagles, and other assorted animals were brought out for entertainment and the educational lecture. It was interesting to watch the children watch the presentation. The majority of the audience was indeed children. By the looks on their faces, they were obviously captivated and enthralled by the presentation. Numerous references were made to the important conservation work of Anheuser Busch and how the company was making the world a better place.

After the animal show, Andrew walked to the Bud Light "Bubble Boy's" Bubble Zone tent to play table hockey. Outside the tent a sign said that you had to be 21 years of age or older to participate. Andrew was glad to learn this seemed only apply to people who were engaged in contests to win free Budweiser gear. As we entered the Bubble Boy's competition area, we observed the half dozen very large and very cool-looking table hockey games. Most of the participants he saw in the Bubble Boy's tent were children and teenagers. Decals on the hockey games featured the Bud Light logo. Andrew got very involved in the competition with a bunch of other kids and was having a great time. He protested mildly when I told him it was time to move on and to enjoy some other venues at Bud World.

Andrew's next stop was a very large building labelled the "Beer Tent." He was a little worried by the sticker on the door that said something about "Budweiser: We ID." But with all the kids coming and going from the beer tent, I convinced him the sign probably only applied to purchasing beer, not enjoying the fun events sponsored by Anheuser Busch. As he went inside, Andrew's eyes lit up. You must understand that Andrew was born in Indiana and is a Hoosier down to his toes. Basketball is in his blood. He was delighted to see two large Budweiser basketball shooting games. Each game station was enclosed by nets and returned the ball after the little kids had made or missed their shots.

The waiting lines were long. Each backboard featured a "Budweiser Hoops" sign. Three different Budweiser neon beer signs were also on the wall the children faced while shooting. Behind the children, parents were buying and drinking beer that was being freely sold over the counter. I was fascinated to watch parents put down the cold ones as they cheered on their children's basketball shooting. Finally, Andrew's turn came. The little Hoosier was shooting well and it took an act of congress to pry him from the game, but I succeeded. As we left the beer tent, I noticed an employee behind the tent who was rapidly unpacking boxes of beer. Correspondingly, in front of the beer tent, garbage cans were literally overflowing with empty beer bottles. Business was good.

Lots of beer was being consumed throughout Bud World not just in the beer tent. Andrew was a little uncomfortable and not used to seeing open alcohol consumption. Salt Lake City has open container laws prohibiting public consumption on the streets. Probably the original intent of this law was to confine alcohol consumption to bars, parties or private homes in order to keep it outside the view of the young. Anheuser Busch had been granted an exception from the city open container laws and was exploiting it.

Patrons within the confines of Bud World were able to consume alcohol freely as they strolled and admired the displays, events, and demonstrations. I can't speak for Andrew, but one of my most enduring images from Bud World was the number of parents walking with one hand holding on to a little child and the other hand around a cold Bud Light. There were lots of baby strollers at Bud World. I took many pictures of Budweiser products stashed in the baby bottle holders of the infant strollers. It must be hard to be a kid and grow up in a world so full of many mixed messages.

In the late afternoon, Andrew wanted to see the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales. We hustled across the plaza to get a good place to watch as the horses left for their parade around the city block. The animals were truly magnificent and once again, the children were enthralled. Lots of parents got their kids in position for a "Kodak Moment" with Johnny or Sally smiling in front of the famous Clydesdales. Andrew knew the horses were ready to move when the spotted Dalmatian hopped on top of the wagon with the drivers. The clip-clop of the horses' hooves on the hard pavement was magical. Dozens of cameras were heard clicking in rapid fashion as the wagon started its round the block tour.

Andrew had a little down time before the next major performance so he camped in front of a building-sized TV screen that showed live action from the Olympic games, courtesy of Budweiser/Anheuser Busch. It wasn't long, however, until a voice on the loud speaker announced the Budweiser magician would be performing on the same Budweiser stage where we had watched the Busch Garden animals a few hours before. The audience for the magic show, again, consisted primarily of children.

They came early to get good seats. The Budweiser magician had lots of tricks and interacted well with the crowd. At one point he asked how many people were visiting. He seemed pleased that most people were locals from Salt Lake City. He thanked them for being there to "support the cause." The magician's most impressive act was when he brought out a beautiful young woman who he heavily chained and locked in Houdini-like fashion. No way was she going to escape. The magician covered her with a four-sided screen that formed a complete enclosure around the woman. A large Budweiser banner was attached to the screen. (I leaned over to Andrew and told him I thought the magician was now going to make the woman's liver disappear, but we would have to wait and see.) After a few moments, the Budweiser screen was lowered and, miraculously, the woman had somehow escaped from bondage. I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be wonderful if alcoholics could escape their chains of addiction so easily." The magician told the crowd, "Thanks for drinking Budweiser. We're number one because of you out there."

Despite all the fun Andrew had had so far, the big attraction was yet to come. This, of course, was the Budweiser All-Star Aerial Show. This extravaganza was to be held in the large, open part of the plaza where steps led down to two trampolines and a large ski jump with a cushioned landing. We had inspected the site earlier in the day when it was empty. I was impressed at how many times and how many different ways the Budweiser logo was emblazoned on the jump, trampolines, and surrounding area. Finally, a voice on the loud speaker advised people to come see the red-hot show. The assembled audience was huge. Snowboarding and free style ski jumping certainly have the highest youth appeal of all the Winter Olympic events. Anheuser Busch had chosen these events well. The Budweiser athletes were flashy, gusty, hip, and young. The music was pounding and the crowd was rockin'.

As the Budweiser All-Star Aerial Show began, I tried to keep one eye on the performers with another eye on the audience. I took a fair number of pictures of the children watching the events. No other word but "mesmerized" can describe the attention level of these kids' faces. Every time the announcer called for applause, children gave the most enthusiastic endorsements of all.

As Andrew and I left the aerial show I had my final and most enduring image of visiting Bud World. Near the entrance gate to Bud World, was a huge inflated world globe. Below it were banners featuring Budweiser logos and Olympic Winter Games athletes. The globe was a popular place for picture-taking and we watched parent after parent position their little kid underneath the Budweiser globe for a photo to remind them of the good time they had at Bud World. As I was watching this process, I noticed a sign to the side of the inflated world that said, " Please do not touch the globe." I thought of how unfair it is that my kid can't touch the Budweiser globe, but how deliberately and effectively Budweiser touches the world that my young son lives in.

I would be very happy to compromise with Anheuser Busch and not touch their globe if they would agree to keep their greedy hands off the images that constitute so much of my child's world. Andrew, like so many other kids in America, is an avid lover, fan, and participant of sports.

Nobody exploits the connection between sports and children like Anheuser Busch. No, their advertising doesn't grab my child by the collar and haul him into the convenience store and make him buy a 6-pack of Budweiser. But it does take a behaviour that has major health and social consequences and normalizes it and glamorizes it in the eyes of the young and the old.

As I was driving home from Bud World, I thought about how effectively and systematically the beer companies promote their products. By professional training, I am a health educator. There is no single objective of health education, but health educators try to change knowledge, beliefs, perceptions, attitudes, values, norms, and behaviour. There is no single function of alcohol marketing, but if you were to subtract the word "knowledge", I think the objectives of Budweiser's marketing people are pretty much the same as mine. We're only working in opposite directions on the same issue.

At the end of the day I had a chance to lie down by Andrew on his bed and talk about our experience. I asked, "Andrew, what's the reason you think that the beer company did all those things at Bud World today?" Andrew does not have a PhD in Health Education, but his answer was profound, simple and on target. He said, "I think the reason they did Bud World was to make kids think that using beer is fun and good, so that when they grow up they will drink Budweiser. And to make kids think there's nothing wrong with it." Pretty perceptive analysis from 10-year-old kid. I don't think August A. Busch IV could have said it any better.

If the intent of Anheuser Busch was to make a positive association with beer in the mind of my son, then lucky for them, we left Bud World just in time. Only a few hours later that night, three hundred riot police had to break up an alcohol-induced "beer brawl" or "violent disturbance" outside Bud World. Twenty people were arrested and the images made local and international news. It wasn't a pretty sight and was in stark contrast to the positive images Bud World presented. I made sure Andrew saw this part of Bud World the next day on the evening news.