Adbusters Can Sue Over TV Ad Ban

An important milestone for Adbusters, who have waged an ongoing battle for years with attempts to purchase 30 second ad spots to run 'unfomercials' in mainstream media. Adbusters were refused the chance to purchase the spots by major North American broadcasters - CBS, in a letter rejecting the commercial, went as far as to say that Buy Nothing Day is “in opposition to the current economic policy in the United States"!

Excerpt from Canada's Toronto Sun, 17 September 2009

'OTTAWA — Adbusters has a green light to take broadcasters to court for rejecting its anti-consumerism ads.

The Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed a technical challenge and cleared the way for Adbusters to sue in the lower courts.

The group, best known for its Buy Nothing Day, took legal action in 2004 against Global Television and the CBC.

Adbusters said the networks’ refusal to carry ads against consumerism and obesity violates its right to free expression.

One of the so-called social marketing spots featured a burping pig superimposed on a map of North America.

Global moved to discredit the legal merit of the case and have it thrown out, but the high court dismissed its challenge.'

Background, excerpt from Wikipedia:

'On September 13, 2004, Adbusters filed a lawsuit against six major Canadian television broadcasters (including CanWest Global, Bell Globemedia, CHUM Ltd., and the CBC) for refusing to air Adbusters videos in the television commercial spots that Adbusters attempted to purchase.

Most broadcasters refused the commercials fearing the ads would upset other advertisers as well as violated business principles by “contaminating the purity of media environments designed exclusively for communicating commercial messages”.

The lawsuit claims that Adbusters' freedom of expression was unjustly limited by the refusals. Adbusters believes the public deserves a right to be presented with viewpoints that differ from the standard. Under Section 3 of the Broadcasting Act, television is a public space allowing ordinary citizens to possess the same rights as advertising agencies and corporations to purchase 30 seconds of airtime from major broadcasters. There has been talk that if Adbusters wins in Canadian court, they will file similar lawsuits against major U.S. broadcasters that also refused the advertisements. CNN in America is the only network that has allowed several of Adbusters’ commercials to run.'