FAKE 4 GOOD

Short List
TitleFAKE 4 GOOD
BrandSOLIDARITÉ SIDA
Product/ServiceTRUMP DEEPFAKE VIDÉO
Category A07. Not-for-profit / Charity / Governemt
Entrant SOLIDARITE SIDA Paris, FRANCE
Idea Creation LA CHOSE Paris, FRANCE
PR LA CHOSE Paris, FRANCE
Production LA CHOSE Paris, FRANCE
Credits
Name Company Position
Pascal Grégoire la chose Founder
Eric Tong Cuong la chose Founder
Fabien Teichner la chose Chief Creative Officer
Shaun Severi la chose Creative Director
Arnaud Girard la chose Copywriter
Léo Debernardi la chose Art Director
Pauline Garoux la chose Account Executive
François Peretti la chose Planner
Barka Zerouali la chose Communication Director
Nicolas Buisset la chose Production Manager
Laura Sacarrère la chose Producer
Shaun Severi la chose Creative Director
Eric Tong Cuong la chose Founder
Barka Zerouali la chose Communications Director
Pauline Garoux la chose Account Manager

Why is this work relevant for PR?

We chose digital platforms as our medium and a short deepfake video to turn the campaign viral. To ensure the campaign's success, we made use of several networks. To reach broad communities, we leveraged Solidarité Sida's sizeable network of influencers. We set up a "war room" in our client's premises to control the campaign in real time and react accordingly. We also issued a physical media kit which referenced a digital press dossier available online. This was sent to a selection of outlets, both specialty and mass media, across a number of platforms so as to ensure maximum news coverage.

Background

The eradication of AIDS is possible. Today, there exist antiviral drugs that can reduce the viral load to undetectable levels. However, a large portion of the global population still doesn't have access to these therapies, and the death toll still numbers 16 million per year, representing half of all HIV-positive people. The replenishment conference of the Global Fund took place for the first time in France, at Lyon. This was an opportunity to raise the 14 billion dollars needed to eradicate AIDS. Since the virus first appeared, a lot of false information has been circulated, and to this day people are still unaware of just how dangerous AIDS still is, and yet how close we are at putting an end to it. But this is the reality, and that's why this digital awareness-raising campaign was needed to mobilize public opinion and put pressure on the world's leaders.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

This campaign and its objectives concern everyone and called for a swift and massive mobilization. We had 3 days to place AIDS and Solidarité Sida back in the spotlight of news and conversation. In the world of politics, as well as in the current public debate, we noticed that the issue of Fake News, of the veracity of information and disinformation, are all recurring topics. Moreover, the use and misuse of DeepFake technology in certain situations has also been the subject of heated discussion. Given our choice of a digital campaign, plus the extremely short timeline, creating a deepfake video featuring Donald Trump, the ambassador of fake news, seemed like the way to go. With the objective of reaching as many people as possible, we chose to disseminate this video via Twitter, as it's the ideal platform to release fresh news and foster chatter and debate.

Describe the PR strategy (30% of vote)

Due to a general lack of awareness and information, most people believe that AIDS is no longer a major threat. But that's of course not true. To raise awareness of this alarming trend and communicate about the extreme importance of replenishing the Global Fund, we decided to confront the public with the absurdity of this "Fake News". We wanted to highlight the power of disinformation with the announcement the eradication of AIDS, while suggesting that with everyone's help, this time, it could actually happen. In an effort to reach as wide a public as possible, we selected a number of pertinent media, of influencers and public figures. And since the fight against AIDS is a major cause, no campaign placement costs were incurred, aside from the creation of a media kit with a flier inviting journalists to watch Donald Trump's announcement on our online press dossier.

Describe the PR execution (20% of vote)

Before the launch of the campaign, we identified the public figures, media and influencers we wanted to reach. This selection was made while taking into account the connections that Solidarité Sida already has through its existing networks. Thus, the public figures and influencers were asked to share the information at a specific time, while the selected media, both generalist and specialist, were sent a kit which included a miniature of Donald Trump and an enigmatic flier inviting them to discover the US President's amazing announcement via our online press dossier. During the campaign, a war room was set up in Solidarité Sida's offices to take care of any eventuality, and to moderate content and manage media coverage.

List the results (30% of vote)

The campaign received tremendous coverage throughout the country. Over fifty French media and approximately thirty international media relayed the campaign over a multitude of different platforms, constituting a new record for the association. The use of a deepfake video created considerable buzz and generated conflicting reactions. But fomenting debate around the issues of Fake News and deepfakes was a deliberate part of our strategy. This approach allowed us to instill a viral quality into the campaign and place Solidarité Sida's objectives center stage. What's more, their objectives were reached. The 14.02 billion dollars hoped for were secured, notably thanks to France's last minute effort, to the tune of 60 million euros.