The Arthur W. Page Society, The Council of PR Firms, The Institute for Public Relations, PRSA and the Public Affairs Council have joined forces to submit "Friend of the Court"
briefs in Nike's appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court over its right as a corporation to free speech. The appeal is in response to the California Supreme Court ruling earlier this
year that Nike's press and other promotional materials are subject to state court rulings on literal and contextual accuracy. The decision effectively lumps PR and other
communications materials, including op-eds and comments to reporters, under the category of commercial advertising, making them subject to suppression by the courts and monetary
fines if the statements are deemed misleading. The ruling has been met with outrage from communications execs nationwide who consider it an obstruction to their organizations'
right to free speech.
The brief filed by the various PR industry groups will be prepared by outside counsel and reviewed by the groups. Nike's appeal was filed Oct. 14. (Arthur Page Society: Paul
Basista, [email protected])