REGULATION OF THE FREE-ADVERTISING AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT

The "new" line between communications that have full First Amendment protection and those that are subject to regulation is still in the process of being delineated by the Supreme Court; legal and mass a communication scholars are proposing a plethora of tests for future cases. Rather than proposing yet another test, this article starts from the premise that future advertising regulation cases will be based on legal philosophy and judicial "world view" as well as law and precedent. First Amendment law and advertising regulation concerns have historically been based on two different concerns and perspectives that have only recently been seen to interact. This article charts a perspective on the differences in the legal, philosophical and historical roots of these two areas, shows how and why they are now seen as interrelated and attempts to give some insight into possible future legal directions in this area. Copyright 1983 by The Policy Studies Organization.