Six months after Louisville police shot and killed Breonna Taylor in her home during a mismanaged no-knock raid, a grand jury has decided to only bring criminal charges against Officer Brett Hankison, one of three officers who fired their weapons that night. Those charges are not directly related to Taylor’s death, but rather for firing … Continue reading “Protests rise after Breonna Taylor announcement”
Here we go again. Public Enemy‘s Fight The Power is one of the most important, exciting and truthful anthems of all time. Since first introduced in Spike Lee’s brilliant and hyperkinetic opening to the 1989 classic Do The Right Thing, it has become protest song that has resonated with audiences seeking change. In the year … Continue reading “Public Enemy drops ‘Fight the Power 2020’ remix”
Players across the NBA have been adamant that more needs to be done to effect social change after the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. It began when The Milwaukee Bucks did not take the floor before the start of Game 5 against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, an action they later stated was due to … Continue reading “Pence aide calls NBA Players boycott: “Silly,” “absurd””
No fans. And now, no players. In light of the violence currently happening in Milwaukee due to the shooting of Jacob Blake, The Milwaukee Bucks have decided to boycott Game 5 of their first-round series with the Orlando Magic. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the game was originally scheduled to tip off at 4 p.m. ET, yet the Bucks remained … Continue reading “Milwaukee Bucks opt to boycott Playoff Game 5”
ADCOLOR announced the nominees and honorees for the 14th Annual ADCOLOR Awards. Since 2007, the awards have highlighted and honored the achievements of diverse communities in the advertising, marketing, PR, media and entertainment industries. They recognize those who go above and beyond to make a difference and embody the organization’s call to “Rise Up, Reach Back.” … Continue reading “ADCOLOR announces noms for 14th annual awards”
Minneapolis has had quite the challenging year. First the city, like others, was crippled by the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. Then it became the epicenter of the Black Lives Matter movement after George Floyd was brutally killed at the hands of four policemen. Before all of these events transpired, 3M had tapped BBDO Minneapolis earlier … Continue reading “7,500 Post-it notes make up mural celebrating unity”
With President Donald Trump consistently referring to the current novel Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic as “The Chinese virus,” it’s no wonder the United States has seen an increase in racism, scapegoating and bigotry, particularly towards Asian populations. This perpetuates the harmful stereotypes that the community has fought for so long to dismantle. With nearly 2,000 reported … Continue reading “Ad Council addresses racism toward API community”
When, and if, the NFL returns this fall, chances are it will look very different. Fans may not be allowed in stadiums due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. And Colin Kaepernick may actually be on a team. Now, Doritos has launched “Crash from Home,” an opportunity for consumers to be part of the highly … Continue reading “Doritos offers fans $150K to create ad for NFL Kickoff”
Like so many across America, the Detroit Youth Choir singers and their families have been deeply affected by the collective pain experienced by the black community following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and many others, as well as the disproportionate impact Covid-19 has had on black health. They felt compelled to … Continue reading “Yessian, Detroit Youth Choir go for ‘Glory’ in BLM”
Lori J. Hall and Jessica D. Lane Alexander want brands to show Black consumers they value their lives and not just the dollars they spend. The two former entertainment executives, based in Atlanta, have officially launched Pop’N Creative, a multicultural agency focused on digital and social content creation, and experience design. The agency is founded … Continue reading “Hall, Alexander are ready to get Pop’N with new agency”
This story has been updated. If you’re from Minneapolis, you should be familiar with the funk/rock group The Time’s song, The Walk. The lyrics go, Everybody walk your bodyEverybody walk, yoo-hoo-hooEverybody walk your bodyEverybody walk That is exactly what African American employees, an LGBTQ+ ally and the Copy Department did at Minneapolis-based agency Periscope yesterday. … Continue reading “Staff wide walkout at Periscope over BLM issues”
In April 2019, Oakbrook-based SweeTARTS launched the ‘Be Both’ brand campaign by San Francisco-based Duncan Channon to celebrate its shared value with Gen-Z of being ‘more than one thing.’ Now, SweeTARTS is launching a new national TV spot ‘Library,’ which will be followed by additional creative in this theme in 2021. In the spot, a SweeTARTS’ fangirl is incredulous … Continue reading “SweeTARTS wants us all to “Be Both” in new campaign”
The Starbucks mermaid is telling Facebook and other social media channels to kiss her fin. The coffee chain is now the latest company to take a break from paid advertising on social media following. The company, like the others before it, claim social media doesn’t do enough to stop racist and violent content. While Starbucks … Continue reading “Starbucks joins social media boycott”
Yesterday, Cannes Lions and The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media at Mount Saint Mary’s University, have released the results of a major study that examines representations of gender, race/ethnicity, LGBTQ+, disability, age, and body size in Cannes Lions ads from 2006 – 2019. The Bias and Inclusion in Advertising Study shows that progress … Continue reading “Diversity and gender addressed at Lions Live”
The Reel 360 team is literally blown away. “What the World Needs Now” is a jaw-dropping, powerful music video performed by Grammy-nominated Tank and The Bangas (along with the band’s friends and family) created by creative agency Elephant for Yahoo. The song, a reimagining of “What the World Needs Now,” was shot and recorded in … Continue reading “If you watch one video today, watch this – you NEED it”
On Wednesday, Johnson & Johnson brand Band-Aid announced in an Instagram post that it would begin selling bandages in a wider range of colors to better accommodate a diverse range of skin tones. Like, uh, no more pink bandages on brown skin? The brand which was founded 100 years ago in 1920, had come under criticism for … Continue reading “Band-Aid to release a wider array of diverse bandages”
“Being white in America is not needing to state your life matters,” a new and striking Procter & Gamble spot reads. “And when your life matters, you have power. Now is the time to use it.” The Cincinnati-based brand has released a powerful spot, called “The Choice.” Targeted at White America, the 1:15 ad asks … Continue reading “P&G asks White America to choose anti-racism”
Created in 1974, Frank Castle, aka The Punisher is a murderous vigilante, who has no problem taking the law into his own ruthless hands. While his skull has become iconic, it has also become a symbol worn by white supremacist and nationalist groups as well as the police. . He has been brought to life over … Continue reading “‘Punisher’ co-creator blasts police for wearing skull”
Just two days after #BlackOutTuesday, McDonald’s has released a powerful :60-second ad created by AOR Wieden + Kennedy New York that directly pays tribute to seven Black Americans killed by police or shot to death while unarmed: Trayvon Martin, Michael BroI Michael Brown, Alton Sterling, Botham Jean, Atatiana Jefferson, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd. McDonald’s … Continue reading “McDonald’s tribute to those killed by police brutality”
Ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s, which has long supported Black Lives Matter, has made a passionate plea on its website late Tuesday, mourning the death of George Floyd. Floyd was murdered on May 25 by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin who held his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes. Threes of those minutes … Continue reading “Ben & Jerry’s releases powerful BLM statement”
