Uncensored Articles Made In China
Humo Magazine
Issue 32 | September 2014
Agency
mortierbrigade
Creative Team
Creative Directors Jens Mortier Joost Berends Philippe De Ceuster Strategy Vincent D’Halluin Art Director Manu Ostyn Copywriter Pieter Staes
Production Team
Interactive Producer Eline Rousseau Business Director Evert Vermeire
Other Credits
Humo Magazine CEO Lisbeth Rillaerts Humo Magazine Marketing Manager Steven Huyers Humo Magazine Editor In Chief Danny Ilegems
Date
April 2014
Background
May 3rd was International Press Freedom day. While people in the West take press freedom for granted, in China, for example, there was no press freedom to speak of. In recent times it had taken a turn for the worse when the Chinese government not only censored an article China on censorship but rewrote it completely.
The Belgian independent magazine Humo wanted to raise awareness of China's disregard for the principles of press freedom and wanted a way to break through Chinese censorship.
Idea
The idea was to take the important article that the Chinese authorities had not allowed to be published in China and have it printed. In China.
The forbidden article was turned into trendy designs and printed on T-shirts, mouse pads, iPhone covers, mugs and baseball caps. The uncensored article on censorship was published under the radar of the censors.
Results
Chinese printers, sewers, folders, packers and all other workers were given the chance to read the article about the Chinese government's censorship of the press and could then share the story with their fellow-countrymen. The story made it back into China in popular Chinese blogs and through Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter. It was picked up and spread by opinion formers such as the famous Chinese artist Aiweiwei.
Importantly, a message of hope was conveyed to writers everywhere that people were sensitive to the importance of a free press.
As for the t-shirts, mouse maps and gadgets, they were sold on the Humo website, raising funds for Reporters without Borders.
Our Thoughts
There are so many ironies here, not the least being that you can only debate the importance of a free press in a free press. That means (second irony) you can only get the issue raised in a still communist country by engaging that most capitalist of institutions, an ad agency.
Third irony, and most intriguing of all, using all the artifices of cunning and subterfuge the left has long attacked advertising for, mortierbrigade here supports a leftist ambition to proselytize the freedom of the press in an undemocratic country. Nice.