AMNESTY- SNOWDEN OUT OF OFFICE

TitleAMNESTY- SNOWDEN OUT OF OFFICE
BrandAMNESTY
Product/ServiceNON-PROFIT ORGANISATION
Category C02. Use of Mobile
Entrant GARBERGS Stockholm, SWEDEN
Idea Creation GARBERGS Stockholm, SWEDEN
Media Placement GARBERGS Stockholm, SWEDEN
PR GARBERGS Stockholm, SWEDEN
Production GARBERGS Stockholm, SWEDEN
Credits
Name Company Position
Petter Ödeen Garbergs Creative Director
Per Forssberg Garbergs Copywriter
Sebastian Smedberg Garbergs Art Director
Ellinor Ekström Garbergs Digital Designer
Nasim Kabiri Garbergs PR/Activation
Najeb Albakar Garbergs Motion Creative assistant
Robin Lidbom Garbergs Motion Director
Anna Alfonzetti Garbergs Account Manager
Redpipe Sound Sound Studio
Joanna Backman Amnesty Communications Manager
Johanna Westeson Amnesty Expert

The Campaign

We wanted to send a message using communication subject to mass surveillance. We made it possible to change your ordinary Out of Office reply to a personal message from Edward Snowden. All digital communication is monitored and basically anything you say, write or do online is being watched by the American government. This means every phone call, every email and every text message is being read and evaluated. This is a clear violation of human rights. We used the same channels subject to mass surveillance and made it possible to change your ordinary Out of Office reply to a personal message from Edward Snowden. The message, paired with the call to sign the appeal, was accessed at snowdenoutofoffice.com

Creative Execution

• Implementation We set up a site: snowdenoutofoffice.com where everyone could download messages for voicemail, email auto-replies and other private media channels. The site also led visitors to a page where they could sign a petition for Snowden. • Timeline It’s customary for an American President leaving office to grant pardons to prisoners. As Barrack Obama’s second term was coming to an end Amnesty International was campaigning for the release of Edward Snowden and other whistle blowers, persecuted for sharing information about government activities breaching human rights. Lots of people are away during holidays which gave the opportunity to use voice mails and out-of-office replies. • Placement The media itself was part of the message. A lot of people first became aware of the global mass scale surveillance of personal emails and phone calls when Mr. Snowden exposed it. Using these channels stressed the underlying message.

Results

• Business impact – sales, donations, site traffic • Response rate The activity generated a lot of attention and that more than one million people signed the petition for the pardon of Edward Snowden. • Change in behaviour Edward Snowden was NOT granted a Presidential pardon, but the struggle continues. Mr. Snowden is a whistle blower and a hero, exposing violations of human rights. A number of constitutional suits have been launched both in the US and in many other countries as a result of his revelations.

The campaign made people sign a petition for the immediate pardon of Edward Snowden. Instead of using traditional channels, we utilized the media channels that were subjected to illegal surveillance by American government agencies, on which Mr. Snowden blew the whistle. Personal emails, voice mail and out of office replies, direct one-on-one communication meant to both raise awareness and asking people to engage.

• Data gathering A lot of people are upset by the fate of Edward Snowden. We used their engagement in spreading the message. Apart from just signing the petition, the campaign was a way to draw attention to injustices being carried out. • Target audience We wanted to reach people that don’t normally take part in Amnesty’s work. The case of Edward Snowden and the extent of the unlawful global surveillance being carried out by intelligence agencies have upset a lot of people. • Approach With a short message from Edward Snowden, paired with a request to sign a petition, we wanted to grab attention as quick as possible to inform and convert to action. • Call to action The CTA was to sign the petition for a pardon of Edward Snowden. We also wanted as many people as possible to download and use the messages, to spread the campaign further.