The people who produce some of the most provocative anti-tobacco ads filed suit against Lorillard, a major tobacco company.
They say Lorillard is trying to silence them because they're doing too good a job.
It may be the most serious clash so far in a feud between the tobacco industry and the creators of what's called the Truth Campaign.
The people behind the edgy — and often controversial — campaign say the ads are effective because they talk to kids on their level.
The ads are funded by the landmark 1998 settlement agreement between 46 attorneys general and the big tobacco companies. Under the deal, the companies agreed to pay millions of dollars for a public education campaign — as long as it didn't "personally attack" or "vilify" them.
Now Lorillard says the Truth Campaign is doing just that, and Lorillard is preparing to sue.
The Last Straw
Lorillard says the straw that broke the camel's back was a radio ad in which someone pretending to be a dog-walker called the company offering to sell dog urine.
"Dog pee is full of urea, and that's one of the chemicals you guys put into cigarettes," the ad said.
"That's factually incorrect, it's gross and it's misleading," said Steven Watson, vice president of Lorillard.
The makers of the Truth Campaign say Lorillard's real motivation is to silence the ads, which have driven down youth smoking, costing Lorillard big money.
This past week, they pre-emptively filed a suit of their own, asking a judge to block Lorillard from being able to go to court.
"I don't think we're vilifying," said Cheryl Healton of the American Legacy Foundation. "And frankly, I don't think we need to vilify to make a good ad about why somebody should stay away from this product. It's not a healthy thing to do."
Ultimately, a judge may have to decide where to draw the line between education and vilification.
