"Got Milk" Free Speech

“Got Milk?” A Violation of Free Speech Our history shows that the United States Supreme Court mandated that the First Amendment would not allow the government to force speech on individuals and that it would not prevent individuals from speaking. Even though this amendment appears to be very forthright, there have been numerous free speech issues that violate free speech and are proven to be unconstitutional. A free speech issue that is currently being discussed today has to do with the promotion of milk. The “Got Milk” campaign has been running for almost twenty years and dairy farmers have been required to pay for these advertisements whether they support the advertisements or not. This issue has been enflamed after a “Got Milk” advertisement ran in the 2013 Super Bowl. In the realm of advertising, the Super Bowl ranks as one of the most expensive promotional airing times on television. With over 163 million viewers, a thirty-second advertisement at the Super Bowl would cost around $3.8 million. Unfortunately all dairy farmers are forced to pay for the expenses of these advertisements. The question is; is the government violating freedom of speech by forcing speech through these milk campaigns? These milk advertisements are intended to promote the health benefits that milk provides to consumers. The 2013 Super Bowl commercial featured Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his search to find milk. The commercial begins with him looking in the fridge and finding an empty container of milk. He then hurries out of his apartment in search of the milkman and encounters several people that are in desperate need of his assistance. He ignores all pleas for help including a little girl’s cat stuck in a tree, a group robbing a bank, a circus that has broken out on the streets and even an alien invasion. It is not until he gets back to his apartment, serves his little girls’ breakfast, and has a glass of milk for himself that he leaves to start saving the city.

Cited: Magan, M. N. (n.d.). Was the 'got milk? ' 2013 super bowl commercial a violation of free speech?. Retrieved from http://www.policymic.com/articles/24815/was-the-got-milk-2013-super-bowl-commercial-a-violation-of-free-speech Cochran v. veneman. (February, 2004 24). Retrieved from http://www.ij.org/cochran-v-veneman United states v. united foods. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000- 2009/2000/2000_00_276