Tobacco Marketing and Advertising Restrictions in S. 1415, 105th Congress: First Amendment Issues

Publication Date: May 1998

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Business

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Abstract:

Sections 122-123 of S. 1415, 105th Congress, would prohibit, among other things, outdoor tobacco advertising on billboards, tobacco advertising with human or animal images or cartoon characters, and most tobacco advertising on the Internet. Although the First Amendment provides only limited protection to commercial speech, S. 1415's marketing and advertising restrictions, to the extent that they deny adults access to tobacco advertising more than is necessary to protect children, may be unconstitutional.