Cigarette Cos. Hack at FDA Regs with 1st Amendment Lawsuit

Image via WikipediaFive tobacco companies have joined forces to file suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to challenge the constitutionality of Food & Drug Administration regulations set to take effect in September 2012.

In R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. et al. v. U.S. Food & Drug Administration et al. (Case No. 1:11-cv-01482), Reynolds, Lorillard Inc., Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co., Liggett Group LLC and Commonwealth Brands, Inc., claim their First Amendment rights would be violated by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 [H.R. 1256], which would require them to display graphic images of the health dangers of smoking in advertising and on their packaging.

First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams, who represents the plaintiffs, told LegalTimes the FDA regs constitute anti-smoking advocacy by the government, rather than merely requiring disclosure of uncontroversial facts. Abrams told LegalTimes his clients' First Amendment rights would be infringed on if they were mandated to include information on their products urging the public not to purchase them.

Under H.R. 1256, the FDA includes nine warnings, including images of diseased lungs, a body on an autopsy table, and a quit-smoking hotline telephone number. Judge Richard J. Leon will hear the case.

Internet Maven Abrams to Expand Online Publishing Empire

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeNBC News Chief Legal Analyst Dan Abrams, son of prominent First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, buoyed by the success of media news Web site Mediaite and his four other Web properties, is expanding his digital publishing realm, according to a New York Times story.

The 44-year-old former MSNBC anchor next year will debut Mogulite, which sounds like a mutant race from H.G. Wells' Time Machine, but will be a Web site devoted to covering prominent business personalities. Also in the works are a job board site to compete against Mediabistro.com, and Mary Sue, a technology news Web site targeting women.

Besides Mediaite, Abrams presently is the online publisher of Sportsgrid, fashion and beauty site Styleite,  Gossip Cop and technology site Geekosystem. According to the Times article, the five sites combined generate more than 6.4 million views monthly. Abrams believes the sites could begin operating in the black early in 2011.