The Virginia legislature passed two regulations that prohibited the use of certain words in advertisements for alcoholic beverages generally and advertisements within college student publications specifically.
The first regulation, which applied to all advertisements, prohibited references to mixed beverages, except for the terms "Mixed Drinks," "Mixed Beverages," "Exotic Drinks," "Polynesian Drinks," "Cocktails," "Cocktail Lounges," "Liquor," and "Spirits." References to "Happy Hour" or similar terms were also prohibited.
The second regulation, which applied only to college student publications, limited advertising of beer, wine, and mixed beverages by restaurants in such publications to the use of the following words: "A.B.C. on-premises," "beer," "wine," "mixed beverages," "cocktails," or "any combination of these words." Reference to particular brands or prices was forbidden.
Educational Media at Virginia Tech, Inc., owns several print and broadcast media outlets, including a student-run newspaper at Virginia Tech. Almost 99 percent of its annual budget came from advertising revenue. It estimated that these regulations would cost it $30,000 in lost advertising revenue each year. Educational Media challenged the two regulations on First Amendment grounds.
Should these regulations be held valid or invalid under the Central Hudson test?