Sunday, November 15, 2009

Missed opportunity or understated success?

In this day and age, there's now such a thing as "digital dating abuse." The Family Violence Prevention Fund set up thatsnotcool.com to educate teens about unhealthy texting patterns, violating your partner's email account or social networking page, and/or pressuring said partner to "sext" or take nude pictures.  Here's the pitch:

Your mobile, IM and online accounts are all a part of you. When someone you're dating is controlling, disrespecting or pressuring you in those spaces, that's not cool.

I think it's a great idea and a laudable cause, but I wonder how many teens will get drawn in by sock puppets. That kind of mascot worked brilliantly for Fandango, but those are movie tickets and this is abuse. Maybe I'm wrong and the lighthearted nature will ultimately hook more teens and increase the viral component. But I think FVPF and the Ad Council missed the full potential of the campaign by packaging it in gauze, and risk alienating themselves from the demographic by trying too hard to be cool or treating them like kids.


I could see a fully fleshed-out multimedia campaign, dynamically designed and delivered in the voices teens seek out the most: celebrities and their peers. Not every celebrity, but those in touch with this generation, with personal experiences relating to the subject matter, and a willingness to speak out. Concerning their peers, I could see a campaign utilizing teens to deliver testimonials (most likely of other teens' for safety reasons but there could be an opt-in option to deliver one's own story: "I thought my boyfriend was just being supportive when he started texting me every hour to check on me. It wasn't until he ..." etc. And then a guy could speak next (depending on the commercial time); there could be tabs on the website with the first name of the person and a breakdown of their story, paired with clever photography that could capture/portray the nature of this method of control.

There's also this song that fits perfectly.




Bottom line: The more gravitas you build into the packaging, the more respect the message gets. I think the site has great potential of getting teens talking to each other and raising awareness, which ultimately spells success, but I hope the teens don't walk away thinking its a 'light' issue. This is often where a healthy relationship (if it even started as one) derails, and an excellent way of steering clear of danger by recognizing the red flags.

Highlights of the site: Thumbs up for the phrase "textual harassment." I like this subset of the category called "Callout Cards" (the larger category is a mixed bag of passive-aggressive ways to confront the offending significant other or a friend you're concerned about. As ways to psych yourself up for a serious talk/break-up, I think they're great. But otherwise, they seem like a nonconstructive way to provoke the wrath of somebody who already has shown an inability to respect boundaries).

Day 2 Update: The site's growing on me, but I'd like to see more information about the long-term effects and why this needs to be taken seriously from the beginning.

I like the vintage design on the cards. I'm happy to see that some people have posted comments sharing their experiences. Let the community-building begin!

Posing a question to you in past posts has not yielded results, but I will persist in my curiosity and quest for generating conversation and learning from you. :) What's your take on this? (Feel free to call me out if you think I'm taking stuff too seriously)

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