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The Compendium: 7 February

Advertising is often given a hard time for its tendency to mislead consumers into making purchases they don’t need. So, in an effort to right this wrong, the team at Screen Junkies have started producing honest trailers for new releases.   

Earlier this week, the Herald released a story of a man who almost drank himself to death when trying to outdo a friend as part of his ‘Neknomination.’ And while the social media-powered game has spawned some bad press, it has also been given a bit of a more positive twist by some in South Africa. When Brent Lindeque was nominated as part of the game, he took it as an opportunity to give to someone less fortunate. His simple act of kindness in a nation burdened by extreme inequality has now resulted in the evolution of neknomination to RAKnomination (with the prefix standing for ‘random act of kindness’).

Instead of running an ad during the Super Bowl, insurance company Esurance decided to give the money saved to one of the millions of people who entered the competition via Twitter. PR stunts simply don’t get much more effective than this.

To celebrate its afflliation with the Olympic Games and simultaneously ameliorate its image as one of the leading causes of obesity in the world, McDonald’s has launched a new TVC that draws a parallel between eating a chicken nugget and biting a gold medal. 

 

Coke celebrates diversity in the States with a multi-lingual rendition of America, the Beautiful. As would be expected, intolerant Super Bowl viewers levelled criticism at the ad on account of the lack of “American” being spoken. Fortunately, one savvy news anchor weighed in to set the record straight.   

Intel and inspirational climber Erik Weihenmayer suggest that true greatness lies inside in this spine-tingling spot by Venables Bell & Partners.

Slam poet Rives tells a TedTalk audience what he would do if he controlled the internet. Although the clip has been floating around for a few years, it’s still worth a watch.

  

Social media combines with photography to brilliant effect in this video on a young artist living in New York. This video also offers an interesting foil to ‘The Humans of K’Road.

China finds a military-inspired solution to deal with the growing problem of internet-addicted teens. While China’s deplorable approach to human rights isn’t often considered as a solution to social problems, some parents at their wits’ end in the western world might consider signing up their troubled teens for a similiar programme.  

  

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