JINGLE ALL THE WAY

Kars4Kids Jingle Just Won’t Die Despite Court Order

A lower court found that the charity’s commercials were “misleading by omission” due to discrepancies regarding where the money was being spent.

The Kars4Kids jingle will keep on jingling in California. A California appeals court sided with the charity after temporarily blocking a lower court order requiring Kars4Kids to pull or overhaul its ads, allowing it to continue airing during the appeals process. “The uninterrupted airing of its ads will enable the charity to continue funding its programs for children and families,” spokesperson Wendy Kirwan told the California Post. The lawsuit was originally filed by Californian Bruce Puterbaugh, who said he felt misled when the money from his donated vehicle did not go to underprivileged children in California. Instead, the funds went to programs such as assisting 17- and 18-year-olds participating in gap-year trips to Israel. The donations also helped fund a 2002 purchase of a building in Israel and nearly half a million dollars put toward “Middle East outreach.” The lower court found that the charity’s commercials were “misleading by omission” due to discrepancies regarding where the money was being spent, the group’s religious affiliation, and which age groups were benefiting from the funding. “The public interest is served by transparency in the ‘charity marketplace,’” the judge said in his decision. After the original May 8 decision, Kars4Kids was barred from airing commercials in the state unless there was “an express, audible disclosure” about the charity’s religious affiliation and true cause.