Thank You For Smoking & The First Amendment

In a movie all about smoking cigarettes, and the ethical values behind advertising for them to consumers, there is not one scene in Thank You For Smoking where you see an actor and/or actress in the film ever smoking a cigarette.

Movie Summary

The film, released in 2005 and based on the 1994 novel by Christopher Buckley, follows the work of Big Tobacco lobbyist Nick Naylor on his journey of fighting for people’s right to smoke cigarettes while battling personally with being a role model for his 12-year-old son. Naylor charms some with his charisma and looks, while he infuriates others with his quick wit. Naylor fights an uphill battle against the anti-cigarette crusaders throughout the movie, and many twists and turns throughout the film lead to an unexpected ending. However, the ending remains as logical as Nick Naylor is throughout the entirety of the film.

Ethical Issues

"The beauty of an argument is that if you argue correctly, you're never wrong."

A popular scene and quote from the film, Nick Naylor says this when he takes his son on a trip with him to Hollywood to pitch his idea of having movie-makers back smoking. Nick Naylor exhibits a lack of moral and ethical guidelines multiple times during the movie, something he even describes in the film as “moral flexibility.” He explains to his son his ability to spin the truth in any way he needs to so that he always appears to be correct on whatever topic is discussed. Teaching this to a 12-year-old boy is an obvious ethical issue, as many parents want their children to grow up well-rounded individuals that can see and admit when they are wrong. As many women/spouses can probably relate to in this film, Naylor’s ex-wife is very unsupportive of the values he is teaching their son. Nick still continues to teach his son ethically wrong ways, and yet his son still continues to question that even if you can do something, should you?

First Amendment Issues Presented in the Film

“Congress shall make no law…”

These first words of the First Amendment of The Constitution play in the back of our minds when watching this film. When we see how hard Nick Naylor’s opponent in the movie, Senator Ortolan Finistirre from Vermont, to put a skull and crossbones on the boxes of cigarettes, we see the power the government has to influence and sway public opinion to their own needs and values.

While many watching the film may not agree with lobbying for cigarettes, as we now know the extent of the harm at which they can cause our bodies, Nick Naylor’s simple task in the movie was to fight for the rights of these tobacco companies to retain their right to free speech, while also keeping his own greed in the situation at the forefront. This example of commercial speech is protected under the First Amendment, so if the government tried to intervene in Naylor's occupation it would be considered unconstitutional.

Conclusion

In concluding my thoughts about Thank You For Smoking, I believe that everyone studying commercial speech should watch this movie and really analyze the way in which Nick Naylor's life progresses in the film. While the film leaves a slightly open ending, as to not give away the ending of the film, I believe that we really want to hope for the best for Naylor and his future.

As far as the First Amendment, I believe it is important to protect the rights of commercial speech, or the government will control advertising and we may never know the truth of any products. However, I do believe the companies should absolutely be held accountable for deceptiveness in advertising, and we can only hope corporations hold themselves to a high enough standard as to be honest about the products they are putting out into the world. As the influence of social media soars, and anyone can review and critique anything online, it is essential to the success of the corporations to be honest and transparent about their companies, or else they might be in danger of being "cancelled" and lose all of their customers and business. It is important for these corporations to look out for the best for their customers.