In the case of United States et al. v. New Jersey State Lottery Commission (1974), the U.S Supreme Court ruled that federal law prohibiting lottery-related advertisements on broadcast media was not applicable to state-run lotteries, overturning a lower court's decision. The Federal Communications Commission had sought to prevent the New Jersey State Lottery from advertising its operations on radio and television, citing a 1934 law banning such promotions. However, in light of changes made by Congress in 1975 which allowed states to operate their own lotteries, the Supreme Court held that this prohibition did not extend to state-sponsored lotteries as they were legal entities under state law. This ruling effectively permitted states running their own lottery schemes to advertise them over broadcast media without violating federal laws.

The dissenting opinion in the case of United States et al. v. New Jersey State Lottery Commission argued that the majority's interpretation of federal law was overly broad and inconsistent with Congressional intent. The dissenters believed that Congress did not intend to prohibit state-run lotteries from advertising on radio or television when it passed legislation regulating interstate gambling activities, as there was no explicit mention of such a ban in the statute itself. They also pointed out that many states relied heavily on revenues from their lottery operations to fund public services, and thus any restrictions on their ability to advertise would have significant financial implications for these states. Furthermore, they contended that allowing federal authorities to regulate state lottery advertisements could potentially infringe upon states' rights under the Tenth Amendment.