POM advertised that its pomegranate-based products had significant health benefits that were backed by medical studies. The FTC sued, contending that the advertising was misleading. The agency ordered POM to stop making such health benefit claims. POM appealed. The court of appeals held that POM:
A) had "adequate" medical information to back up its claims, so could continue such ads.
B) was protected by the First Amendment right to free speech.
C) was engaged in deceptive advertising, so the FTC had authority to stop the ads.
D) had "significant" medical information to back up its claims, so could continue such ads.
E) none of the other choices are correct.

Question

POM advertised that its pomegranate-based products had significant health benefits that were backed by medical studies. The FTC sued, contending that the advertising was misleading. The agency ordered POM to stop making such health benefit claims. POM appealed. The court of appeals held that POM:
A) ​had "adequate" medical information to back up its claims, so could continue such ads.
B) ​was protected by the First Amendment right to free speech.
C) ​was engaged in deceptive advertising, so the FTC had authority to stop the ads.
D) ​had "significant" medical information to back up its claims, so could continue such ads.
E) ​none of the other choices are correct.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The court of appeals held that POM was engaged in deceptive advertising, so the FTC had authority to stop the ads. Despite POM's claims of having medically-backed health benefits of its pomegranate-based products, the FTC found that the advertisements were misleading and unsupported by adequate scientific evidence. Therefore, the court upheld the FTC's order for POM to stop making such claims.

POM Advertised That Its Pomegranate-Based Products Had Significant Health Benefits