Fck The Cupcakes launches teaser campaign, asks for brand support
Fck The Cupcakes (FTC), the industry initiative launched by Innocean CEO Jasmin Bedir in 2021, has this week launched a teaser of its ‘Be the Change’ campaign aimed at men.
The campaign asks men both within the industry and in wider society to be agents of change in the fight for equality between the genders.
One of the assets for the campaign
It follows the release of the ShEqual report last year which detailed not only instances of pervasive misogyny within adland, but the desire by women for men to speak up more.
Bedir said of the campaign: “The truth is many men have disengaged from the conversation. For the vast majority of men, they do not relate to the stories of extreme sexual assault, unfair dismissal or domestic violence so often covered in mainstream media. They have no lived experience of what the average woman goes through in their daily workday, nor their unconscious contribution to it. Brand owners form an important role in helping to change the conversation, and we would like more to help us ‘Be the Change’.”
FTC is also asking for brands to be involved to support the campaign.
Another asset for the campaign, referencing Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s partner Jen.
The FTC committee includes creative (Innocean), media (Hearts & Science), PR (Edelman), digital (Performics Mercerbell), and publishers (10 ViacomCBS, JCDecaux, ARN, Hoyts, and Val Morgan), as well as supporting organisations Never Not Creative, ShEqual, and Impact.com. FTC is also in talks with men’s groups, including Man Cave, Line and Length, and Our Watch, to provide feedback on the campaign concept.
The campaign will be on the channels of the media partners listed above.
Hoyts Group chief people officer Jodi Paton said: “Reducing gender inequality at work requires action at all levels. Being honest about our professional landscape as it stands today is vital. We want to seek to understand bias and our role as an organisation in reducing it. Rather than being fearful of the answers, we need to ask ‘What can we do?’ so that we can understand the systems and practices that may be barriers to achieving gender equality. As a media owner, we want to drive the conversation that will lead to sustainable, systemic changes that widen our definition of success and leadership across our industry.”
10 ViacomCBS chief sales officer Rod Prosser, ARN chief commercial officer Pete Whitehead, and JC Decaux chief people officer Alissa Bartlett all voiced their support.
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