MAM
ZEEL launches #BreakTheCoronaOutbreak campaign
MUMBAI: As the government of India takes continued efforts to encourage good hygiene behavior to safeguard people against the Covid-19 pandemic, it is critical that people act proactively and take precautionary measures to protect themselves and their loved ones. Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has taken a first-of-its-kind initiative – #BreakTheCoronaOutbreak, for the well-being of its audiences.
Maintaining basic hygiene by washing your hands regularly has been identified as one of the key steps to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus, as per the World Health Organisation guidelines. As per the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, on an average, humans could touch their face over 23 times in every waking hour and there could be many such other spontaneous contact points. Repeated handwashing is a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of virus. However, awareness alone cannot drive the kind of behaviour change that is required at scale. Taking the initiative to create a unique reminder for its viewers, ZEE has decided to pause the content across its channels with a 30 second break throughout the day.
Conceptualised by Lowe Lintas, 'pause' will encourage viewers in a creative manner, to use the break to wash their hands. ZEEL chief consumer officer Prathyusha Agarwal said, “As a responsible national television network which entertains 588 million individuals every week, it is our duty to educate and encourage every citizen to adopt and practice healthy habits to fight this pandemic. While several brands are driving awareness around good hygiene, we believe this initiative to pause content and remind our audience to wash their hands will actually drive behavior. Pausing our content when the audience is most engaged will act as an in-home trigger to wash hands and contribute towards combating the spread of the outbreak.”
Lowe Lintas COO Sagar Kapoor said, “Having worked on health and hygiene brands for years, my learning is no matter how much we remind people for washing hands, there will always be laggards. Its importance is at a peak in today’s situation. Hence, a straightforward reminder to wash hands with soap.”
#BreakTheCoronaOutbreak initiative has been rolled out across 40+ channels of the ZEE network, collectively reaching approximately 588 million individuals across the country every week. As a responsible organisation, ZEE aims to support the authorities in their awareness drive against the COVID-19, through a sharp behavioural reminder using its strength as a television network to reach out to the length and breadth of the country.
MAM
Backslash 2026 report: Why human presence now matters more
Six cultural shifts reveal why human presence is the new badge of value
NEW YORK: In a year when artificial intelligence has churned out oceans of content, cultural intelligence unit Backslash argues that what people now crave is something far less automated. Its 2026 Edges report lands with a clear thesis: culture is searching for proof of human.
Backslash, which serves the agencies of Omnicom Advertising, publishes the Edges report annually to spotlight global cultural shifts with enough staying power to shape brand futures. This year’s six new Edges suggest the pendulum is swinging away from frictionless perfection and back towards craft, provenance and visible effort.
After a flood of AI generated output, audiences have developed a sharper instinct for what feels synthetic and what feels real. The telltale signs of care, quirks and even flaws are becoming signals of value.
“We’re entering a moment where output is cheap, but meaning is not,” said Backslash director of cultural strategy and co author of the report Cecelia Girr. “Technology can do more than ever before. The harder question is whether we want it to. In this next chapter, humanity itself becomes the differentiator.”
The six edges for 2026
- Dark mode: As algorithms flatten taste and feed everyone the same stream, people are retreating into private corners and cultivating one of a kind identities. Meaning, it seems, lives in what does not scale.
- Digital friction: After decades spent polishing away every obstacle, culture is warming to technology that slows us down on purpose. Boundaries and built in limits are being reframed not as bugs, but as safeguards for being human.
- Discomfort zone: In a world engineered for ease, struggle and risk are staging a comeback. Discomfort is becoming aspirational because it signals growth and a more vivid sense of being alive.
- Awakened world: Exhausted by auto pilot living, people are seeking experiences that sharpen awareness and re enchant everyday life. Attention is the new luxury.
- Modern civility: After years of rule breaking and norm shredding, total freedom is starting to feel tiring. Shared codes of conduct are re emerging as a pathway to mutual respect and calmer discourse.
- Archive authority: As digital footprints stretch indefinitely, questions about ownership and memory are intensifying. Who controls what is preserved, what is deleted and who gets access to our collective history may be the next cultural battleground.
If 2025 was the year of machine made abundance, Backslash suggests 2026 will reward what feels unmistakably human. Not louder, not faster, but more intentional. In an age of infinite output, proof of presence could be the most powerful brand asset of all.
