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New SKU Of Colt 45 Features Snoop Dogg, Gets Flack

Colt 45's new Blast fruit-flavored beverage features the rapper Snoop Dogg appearing in a Web video in a white fur coat and a bevy of scantily clad models. The sub-brand is focused on Twitter, Facebook and blogs, according to owner Evan Metropoulos. Snoop has eight million followers on Facebook and 3.1 million on Twitter, and has mentioned Blast on both frequently. The alcoholic drinks come in soda-pop flavors and that's a problem for groups like the Marin Institute, which says products like Blast appeal to kids and serve as a bridge to get them drinking at young age.

Another critic is Tom Burrell, author and founder of urban-market ad agency Burrell Communications, who says the effort is aimed at getting young African American men to drink. "Colt 45 has invested in the black consumer market for years," he says, "and if they weren't looking for an African-American audience, they wouldn't be using Snoop Dogg."

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