NYT/AP: Beef Makers Can Be Forced to Pay for Ads

[DeepModem Mom]

Beef Makers Can Be Forced to Pay for Ads
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: May 23, 2005
Filed at 6:07 p.m. ET


WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government can make cattle ranchers pay for ads proclaiming ''Beef: It's what's for dinner,'' the Supreme Court ruled Monday.

Some ranchers object to paying for the ad campaigns because they don't like the generic message that all beef -- American or foreign -- is good. But the court ruled in a 6-3 decision that the beef program amounts to government speech that is shielded from First Amendment challenge.

The government is allowed to promote its own message and compel producers to pay fees, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote....

***

At issue is a program passed by Congress in 1985 requiring cattle producers to pay $1 for every head of cattle sold in the United States for industry advertising and research.

The Agriculture Department collects the ''checkoff'' fees, which total more than $80 million annually, and distributes the money to an industry group appointed by the department to run the program....


http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Scotus-Beef-Campaign.html

[Trillo]

1. How does this relate to fake news? nt

[AwareOne]

2. The cattle industry is subsidized to the hilt by the

federal government. Ever wonder why you can buy two quarter pounders for 99 cents? It's because you already paid to raise the cattle, feed them, water them, protect them from predators, fence off the highways from cattle, run electricity to rural ranches, and on and on and on. It's about time the ranchers had to pay for something themselves.

[anotherdrew]

3. this is bull

If they can force them to pay for this... how long 'til they attach a fee to say.... porno films... and use the money to promote abstenance?

How constitutional do you think ol' Antonin would have found it if say, the fee was on gas sold and the money went to fund alternative fuel R&D?

[DeepModem Mom]

5. Good point, anotherdrew -- welcome to DU!

[area51]

4. Beef ad campaign.

"Beef: It's what's for dinner"

I swear, that's the lamest ad line I've ever heard. I'm surprised it ever got approved. :evilgrin:

[Miss Chybil]

6. Isn't this something like bloated government? Unnecessary

bureaucracies? I don't get it.