Cite as: 527 U. S. 173 (1999)
Opinion of the Court
that at least part of the Central Hudson inquiry had "become a tougher standard for the state to satisfy," 149 F. 3d, at 338, but held that § 1304's restriction on speech sufficiently advanced the asserted governmental interests and was not "broader than necessary to control participation in casino gambling," id., at 340. Because the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reached a contrary conclusion in Valley Broadcasting Co. v. United States, 107 F. 3d 1328, cert. denied, 522 U. S. 1115 (1998), as did a Federal District Court in Players Int'l, Inc. v. United States, 988 F. Supp. 497 (NJ 1997), we again granted the broadcasters' petition for certiorari. 525 U. S. 1097 (1999). We now reverse.
III
In a number of cases involving restrictions on speech that is "commercial" in nature, we have employed Central Hudson's four-part test to resolve First Amendment challenges:
"At the outset, we must determine whether the expression is protected by the First Amendment. For commercial speech to come within that provision, it at least must concern lawful activity and not be misleading. Next, we ask whether the asserted governmental interest is substantial. If both inquiries yield positive answers, we must determine whether the regulation directly advances the governmental interest asserted, and whether it is not more extensive than is necessary to serve that interest." 447 U. S., at 566.
In this analysis, the Government bears the burden of identifying a substantial interest and justifying the challenged restriction. Edenfield v. Fane, 507 U. S. 761, 770 (1993); Board of Trustees of State Univ. of N. Y. v. Fox, 492 U. S. 469, 480 (1989); Bolger v. Youngs Drug Products Corp., 463 U. S. 60, 71, and n. 20 (1983).
The four parts of the Central Hudson test are not entirely discrete. All are important and, to a certain extent, inter-
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