Monica Lewinsky:
The Epidemic
Cyberbullying has become a global epidemic that is the root cause for 20% of teen suicides. But because cyberbullying is harder to see than offline bullying, victims often go unnoticed until it’s too late.
To create awareness of this unseen epidemic, anti-bullying advocate Monica Lewinsky released a unique mobile experience that integrates real text messages with film. On first viewing, the film seems to tell the story of a girl growing sicker from a health epidemic. The viewer is then prompted to enter their phone number to see what really happened. The same film plays again, but this time the viewer receives real text messages at the same time as the girl in the video receives them. It becomes clear that the girl is a victim of cyberbullying. By receiving texts, the viewer gets to see exactly how victims experience cyberbullying: on their phones. All texts were inspired by real cyberbullying messages.
Within a week, over 200,000 texts were sent in 157 countries. The interactive PSA was featured on the Today Show, CNN, CBS, Teen Vogue, Daily Mail, People, and Fast Company. It got 100+ million media impressions and was tweeted by celebrities including Ben Stiller, Sarah Silverman and Tony Hawk.
“Monica Lewinsky wants you to feel this young girl’s pain.”
“Threats, harassment, and abuse. Viewers don’t just watch it unfold; we experience it.”
“A harrowing, emotional – and vital – look at an epidemic.”
“A powerful wake-up call to parents and teachers.”