Reply #29: "...to engage U.S. teens with an episode in world history

[beastbitten]

that is in danger of being forgotten."

From the press release at:
http://www.mtv.com/thinkmtv/about/press_releases.jhtml

Director/photographer Michael Franzini worked with the group at Arnold for six months to craft the most compelling message to engage U.S. teens with an episode in world history that is in danger of being forgotten.

“My generation, Gen X, barely knew what the word Holocaust meant,” said Franzini, referring to a 1993 study by the Roper Organization which found that 53% of U.S. high school students could not say what the Holocaust was. “We were horrified to find that teenagers today know even less.”

Franzini sent out video crews in four cities last year, approaching teenagers on city streets, asking them what the Holocaust was. Responses included speculation that the Holocaust took place in Iraq and that Hitler was a Jew fighting against the Nazis. Almost 2/3 of those questioned had little or no idea what the Holocaust was. <...>

“We all recall black and white images of the holocaust in our minds. But the Holocaust happened to real people, in full color,” said Roger Baldacci, EVP, Creative Director of Arnold Worldwide. “We hope to make these ads relatable to young people by illustrating what some of the events of the Holocaust would look like in the context of today’s world.”

“To prevent the humanitarian crises of tomorrow, we must never forget the tragedies of the past,” said Ian Rowe, VP of Strategic Partnerships and Public Affairs, MTV. “These striking PSAs from Michael Franzini and Arnold Worldwide serve to reawaken our audience to this dark chapter of human history – and inspire them to help fight against the atrocities being committed in the world today.”