On January 1, a new Espionage Act came to effect in Sweden, an amendment to the constitution that criminalises whistleblowers. This act leads to censorship and threatens free speech as we know it.
Reporters Without Borders Sweden and Åkestam Holst NoA are making these implications known with a self-censoring campaign. On the brink of the new year, the partners collaborated with Sweden’s largest daily newspaper to create a full-page ad that demonstrated how objective journalism is literally fading away.
The ad, featured in the December 31 edition of the paper, was partially printed with a specially designed CO2-sensitive ink. So when January 1 dawned, the ad had begun to censor itself.
“Making this, together with the people at Dagens Nyheter and Bold Printing, took its share of blood, tears and ink,” stated Joakim Khoury, creative director at Åkestam Holst NoA.
Previous collaborations between Reporters Without Borders Sweden and Åkestam Holst NoA include Billboards Without Borders and recent Gold-winner from Eurobest, Death Sentence.
Credits:
Agency: Åkestam Holst NoA
Creative Director: Joakim Khoury
Strategists: Sebastian Stüben & Stina Hansson
Art Director: Hugo Wallmo
Copywriters: Daniel Vaccino & Petter Nylind
Graphic Designer: Sara Bellafesta
Project Manager: Jesper Ander
Production Managers: John Müllersdorf & Caroline Sjöström
Interns: Ida Nordeng & Linn Löfholm
Production: Bold Printing Stockholm
Production Team: Linda Pettersson & Per Andersson
Media Partner: Dagens Nyheter
Contact: Peter Öhrn
