Drinking Too Much Makes Women Ugly. Men? Doesn't Matter

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Here's an interesting one. Apparently, drinking alcohol makes women ugly. A TBWA\London-created campaign for the Drug and Alcohol Service takes advantage of that apparent fact in a new campiagn that focuses on the ugly-inducing side effects of consuming too much alcohol since, you know, women care more about how good they look than how healthy they are.

Oh yes. In our double standard-addled world where men don't give a crap what they look like but all women must be a perfectly smooth-skinned 36DDD-24-36, we won't be seeing an "ugly man" version of this campaign any time soon.

by Steve Hall    May-29-08    
Topic: Cause



Stand Up to Cancer Gets 'We Are the World' Celebu-Treatment

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Not usually a fan of weepy PSA's for cancer, this one from non-profit Stand Up to Cancer directed by David Fincher and voiced by Sydney Poitier caught my attention if only to make sure I could pick out all the celebrities that pop up in the ad. Sydney Poitier, Christy Turlington, Susan Sarandon, NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Morgan Freeman, Lance Armstrong, Keanu Reeves, Tobey Maguire, Casey Affleck, and Jodie Foster are in there. Can you spot more?

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by Steve Hall    May-29-08    
Topic: Cause, Celebrity, Good, Television



Be Virus Smart: Wear a Condom ... and Maybe Download Norton

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In the style of punters, desktop hijackers and Trojan horses circa 1998, the New Zealand AIDS Foundation is circulating this chain letter-style "viral." (Get it? GET IT?!!!)

The punchline: "Catching a virus is easy. Always use a condom." The page also reminds viewers that World AIDS Day takes place on December 1st.

At the bottom of the screen is one last hat-tip to a dead era (unless you have a MySpace account, in which case you still see stuff like this every day): "Please forward this email to five friends today."

Agency: HooperNagel.

by Angela Natividad    May-28-08    
Topic: Cause, Events, Online



MTV and Radiohead Wish to Remind You There are Kids Making Shoes Overseas

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For its song All I Need off the In Rainbows album, Radiohead teamed up with MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking) to create a cause-oriented music video.

In the video, two kids -- one American, one Asian -- go about an ordinary day. As all young Asian children do, the latter spends his time in a factory, making shoes. And like all Americans, the former wiles away the afternoon, coloring and looking bored.

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by Angela Natividad    May-28-08    
Topic: Cause, Video



Gay Couple Hopes to Reunite. Go Help.

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Founder Tim Coco of agency COCO+CO has launched a personal campaign to get Washington's attention. Apparently his husband Genesio J. Junior Oliveira, Jr. was deported last year after failing to win legal status.

His campaign is called Reunite this Family. The site comes stock with a picture of the happy couple and their dog (just aching for reproduction on a shirt), as well as a ticker keeping track of how many days they have been apart.

If you haven't already guessed, the big indignant thorn in Coco's side is the government's failure to recognize their marriage under the '96 Defense of Marriage Act. Wanna help them out? Go donate money or write a harsh letter to your Senator.

by Angela Natividad    May-28-08    
Topic: Cause, Online



Heroes' Hayden Panettiere Saves Whales With eBay Promotion

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Hayden Panettiere, star of NBC's Heroes and whale lover, has signed an endorsement deal with social site Zude and Shopit to sell clothes and raise money for Save the Whales Again, a Whaleman Foundation and Animal Welfare Institute campaign to "create awareness about the industrial slaughter of whales and dolphins."

The effort is getting added awareness with promotional placement on the homepage of eBay which points to a branded eBay page for Save the Whales Again.

As part of the promotion, an auction is being held to raise money with the winning bid (bidder plus five friends) getting tickets to a celebrity fundraiser held at Eva Longoria's Beso restaurant and a whale watching tour with Hayden in the Channel Islands.

by Steve Hall    May-27-08    
Topic: Cause, Celebrity, Online



Down's Syndrome Sufferers Showcase Their Own Capabilities

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For The Prodis Foundation, Vitruvio Leo Burnett demonstrated how versatile children with Down's Syndrome are by letting them put together their own ad.

Well, that's how it was sold to us. The ad is more like a (professionally produced?) patchwork of their everyday activities: laughing with friends, winning karate trophies, going dancing, etc.

The video's about two minutes long and quite moving, though it's probably more so when you understand what's being said. In any case, it won an ADC Gold Cube in Corbis' Search for Justice awards show.



Get a Trashbag and Some Lipgloss. You're Going to a Recycling Party!

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Hungry Man TV is throwing an RSVP-only party for Internet Week, NY.

The theme is "Out with the Old." Attendees are encouraged to bring old mobile phones, mp3 players, digicams and other electronics for recycling.

Nifty idea. And come on, it's not like museums are falling all over themselves to pay for your mint-condition sports WalkMan.

by Angela Natividad    May-23-08    
Topic: Cause, Events, Industry Events, Promotions



Asthma Attack Powerfully Delivered

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Along the lines of Meth and workplace safety ads, this commercial for the American Asthma Foundation dramatically illustrates what it's like to experience an asthma attack. It's not pleasant and the commercial does a perfect job making the point.

by Steve Hall    May-20-08    
Topic: Cause, Commercials, Good



Missing Soldiers Put Internet at Standstill

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This campaign won a Gold Clio in the Content & Contact category.

To commemorate Ehud Goldwasser, Gilad Shalit and Eldad Regev, Israeli soldiers abducted by Hezbollah on July 12 of '06, Y&R/Tel Aviv asked major sites to shut down for five minutes on July 12, '07. For that short period of time, each page aired this message.

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by Angela Natividad    May-20-08    
Topic: Campaigns, Cause, Online