Mood Swipes Against Sexual Harassment

People in Brazil received a nasty surprise when reading newspapers or magazines on their tablets recently, but it was all for a good cause.

Brazilian advertising agency Mood developed an innovative tablet ad that, at first glance, appeared to be a fashion advert. However, when readers reached out to swipe the page, the model screamed and shrunk away.

The 'touch scream' ad was developed for Centro de Integração da Mulher (CIM), an organisation that fights for women’s rights, and was launched after recent research revealed that 26 per cent of Brazilians believe sexual harassment is justified by the way some women dress.

The research ignited a countrywide media debate, with thousands manifesting disapproval, and provided the perfect opportunity for CIM to reach out and invite readers to support its cause.

The clever ad prevented tablet readers from turning the page, unless they swiped the screen without touching the woman. Readers were also presented with a pop-up message explaining the work of CIM.

The ad ran on Revista Veja, Brazil's highest circulation magazine, and O Globo, the most-read newspaper in Rio de Janeiro – the city with the highest number of recorded cases of abuse. It reached almost 430,000 readers in a single day.