2013 Winners & Shortlists

Results and Effectiveness

Right after our caller hung up, phone calls flowed in to retaliate in favor of our cause and to publicly fight back what our caller had so obscenely stated. A week later, the same morning show aired a story tackling racist discrimination in Lebanon, giving way to a more extensive nationwide discussion and keeping the cause at the center of social activist circles. This initiative only enriched the debate created by Cheyef Halak around discrimination and contributed to increasing awareness aon the campaign's web and social channels.

Creative Execution

The campaign was launched with 2 TV commercials which were aired on LBCI and uploaded on YouTube. They aimed at exposing the level of ignorance and misperception in the Lebanese society through various age segments. In order to intensify the debate, interference on various communication mediums was needed to cover a wider audience. In Lebanon, citizens call the morning radio shows to communicate and debate matters such as political conflicts, infrastructure problems and even their marital relation. However, rarely does anyone bring up the controversial topic of racist behavior towards foreign workers. Under the umbrella of discrimination, Cheyef Halak hijacked one of the most popular morning shows through a premeditated phone call on air. The aim was to trigger the long-smothered conversation by intentionally tackling racism with disgraceful arguments that represent the sad truth about the Lebanese society.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

Lebanon’s human rights record spawned a lot of controversy in the past few years, both on National and International levels. Racial discrimination is a common thing in a country that believes in ethnic and social elitism. Human rights watch and other international organizations condemned the situation to an extent that the US Government had downgraded Lebanon to tier 3, the worst possible level, in its report on human trafficking. For another consecutive year, Cheyef Halak tackled the discrimination issue, after numerous local initiatives failed to grasp the attention of the mass public. Maintaining the “Cheyef Halak” aspect was crucial; no opinions, no preaching, no condescending tone of voice, just shaming through sarcasm.