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Morning Update: Mattel launches ‘The Barbie Project’; Kate Middleton’s phone hacked 155 times; Jill Abramson forced out as New York Times executive editor

This is our Morning Update, rounding up international media and marketing news from while you were sleeping.

Creativity Online: Mattel Launches ‘The Barbie Project’ to Find What Parents and Kids Really Think of Barbie

“Barbie elicits feelings of love, hate or ambivalence — but until now, Mattel hadn’t really owned the conversation. The brand has launched “The Barbie Project,” sending two documentarians and a play specialist into the homes of parents to ask them what they think of Barbie — the good, the bad and the very ugly.”

The Guardian: News of the World royal editor: I hacked Kate Middleton 155 times

“Kate Middleton was hacked 155 times by a reporter on the News of the World who said he snooped on her voicemails on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, the Old Bailey has heard.”

AdWeek: Coca-Cola Builds Adorable Mini Kiosks to Sell Mini Cokes 

“It’s the little things in life that makes us happy.” That’s the message in this print and outdoor Coca-Cola campaign from Ogilvy Berlin, and it’s true in advertising generally. Unusually little things tend to get big props—whether you’re talking doll houses, mini Abe Lincolns or tiny billboards.”

Mumbrella Asia: Iris Singapore parts ways with creative director Clarence Chiew

“Integrated ad agency Iris Worldwide has parted ways with its creative director in Singapore.

Clarence Chiew, who was promoted to creative director in January 2013, is moving on from the agency and his next move is unclear.

Replacing Chiew is Ed Cheong, who moves from DDB Singapore, where he was creative director for three years.”

The Guardian: Government ad spend to increase by 22% to almost £300m

“The government is to increase its advertising spend by more than a fifth to almost £300m over the next year.

Major campaigns will be focused on the explaining deficit reduction, theScottish independence referendum and “improving public confidence” in Britain’s role in Afghanistan.”

ikeaAdWeek: Ikea’s Family Tree Ads Show the Beds on Which Each New Generation Was Conceived

“Ikea would like to remind you that the odds are pretty good your parents produced you by having sex on its furniture.

New print ads from the brand in Germany offer a twist on the family-tree motif, with pictures of Ikea beds—dating back to its first, from the late 1940s—inserted in between generations of ancestors. The tagline is, “Where family starts.””

The Guardian: Jill Abramson forced out as New York Times executive editor

“The most august newspaper in the US, the New York Times, was left reeling on Wednesday after its executive editor, Jill Abramson, was fired and replaced by her deputy less than three years into one of the most exalted jobs in journalism.

In a move that caught even the most senior staff at the paper unawares, Arthur Sulzberger Jr, the publisher and chairman of the New York Times Company, announced that Abramson would be replaced immediately by Dean Baquet, the paper’s managing editor. He is the first African American to hold the job, although that milestone is likely to be overshadowed by the sudden dismissal of the paper’s first female top editor in its 162-year history.”

Mashable: There Are 500 Million Soccer Fans on Facebook

“Facebook is gearing up for the FIFA World Cup by unearthing a trove of data designed to persuade marketers to advertise on the platform.

The social network’s piece de resistance is the claim that some 500 million Facebookers are soccer fans. While Brazil has the most fans of any country with 53.8 million, surprisingly, the U.S. is No. 2 with 48.9 million. Facebook considers you a soccer fan if you have liked a team or a player’s page.”

AdWeek: Shutterfly Congratulates Thousands of Women for Babies They Didn’t Have

“This morning, Shutterfly, a photo/card printing website, sent out a mass email congratulating tons of people on their newborn babies. Which would be incredibly thoughtful, had many of the recipients actually given birth.

The error blew up on Twitter, as well as on Shutterfly’s Facebook page. For many recipients, it was just a humorous gaffe. But for people who have struggled with miscarriage, infertility or the loss of a child, Shutterfly’s email seemed particularly cruel.”

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