The Discus vote, by the executive committee of that organization in a telephone conference call yesterday morning, was unanimous. Those who voted included executives of Seagram and units of other liquor giants like the Brown-Forman Corporation, which sells brands like Jack Daniel's and Canadian Mist whiskies; Allied Domecq, with brands like Canadian Club whisky and Beefeater gin, and Grand Metropolitan P.L.C., which sells brands like Smirnoff vodka.

Liquor marketers have long sought to use television and radio to add motion, sound and other appealing stimuli to their ads. Mr. Meister said that for four years Discus had talked -- and conducted research with consumers -- about the possibility of lifting the ban.

''I really didn't understand why this hadn't happened a long time ago,'' said Marvin Shanken, chairman of M. Shanken Communications Inc. in New York, which publishes magazines and newsletters about the marketing of alcoholic beverages.

''The members of the distilled-spirits industry have felt for many years that their competitive position has been with one hand tied behind their back,'' Mr. Shanken said, ''because they too would like access to a medium they think would be very efficient for them.''

The stigma many attached to so-called hard liquor was the main reason the industry voluntarily agreed to refrain from radio and television advertising. Such attitudes date to the days of Prohibition and have been influenced by popular books and films, from ''The Lost Weekend'' to ''Days of Wine and Roses'' to ''Leaving Las Vegas,'' with powerful anti-drinking themes.

''This decision is disappointing for parents and dangerous for our kids,'' Reed E. Hundt, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, said in a statement. Last month, he began an inquiry into the appearance of commercials for Seagram products on television stations in New Hampshire and Texas.

Jodie Bernstein, director of the consumer protection bureau of the Federal Trade Commission, which has primary jurisdiction in regulating advertising, said that while no regulations now prohibit liquor commercials, any such advertising would be subject to the same review and scrutiny all ads face.