MAM
Dentsu Grant Group partners news channel to fight negativity during lockdown in Sri Lanka
MUMBAI: Dentsu Grant Group, Sri Lanka, the local Dentsu Aegis Network office and largest integrated communication group in the country, and popular local TV channel Swarnavahini launched ‘Happy News’, a special, two-minute news segment that broadcasted stories of optimism and moments of joy, to counter negativity around local Covid2019 news stories with stories of positivity and hope.
Sri Lankans spent 52 days in a government-enforced curfew and lockdown to protect its citizens from the global Covid2019 pandemic. This proved to be an extremely difficult time for people across the country, made more acute by constant news of the virus spreading and extensions of lockdown to ensure the safety of the society at large.
Dentsu Grant Group, Sri Lanka approached the popular local TV channel Swarnavahini on Live@8, their main news bulletin, to counter this negativity. Together, they launched ‘Happy News’, a special, two-minute news segment that broadcasted stories of optimism and moments of joy; to bring a smile to the face of the viewers during their newscast. This local industry-first media innovation has been crafted to counterbalance the surge of negative stories related to the ongoing global pandemic and encourage Sri Lankans to share their positive moments at home, with the rest of the country.
“Being one of the leaders in the communications industry in the country, we decided to do our part,” said Dentsu Grant Group chairperson-MD Neela Marikkar. “We wanted this to be an authentic segment to uplift people with some ‘happy moments’ during these dark times devoid of any commercialism. Swarnavahini also bought into this platform with enthusiasm and partnered us on this journey.”
Some of Sri Lanka’s biggest celebrities and influencers were featured on this two-minute segment which was aired for the first time on 25 April. Swarnavahini’s Live@8 news programme averages a daily reach of over 1.6 million. Rarely shown to the public, an intimate, stripped back look into these personalities’ lives were featured on national television; their individual ‘take’ of how to keep positive during the lockdown; some writing songs of their experiences; others introducing their own family members who have shied away from the public – were unique ‘Happy News’ stories that were featured on this segment.
A total of eight ‘Happy News’ segments have been aired during a span of two weeks. All segments were turned around in under two days each, produced from script to final film internally by the agency creative people, who have been working from home since the 16 March 2020 as per the Sri Lankan pandemic regulations. All the team members worked remotely from their homes and were able to deliver live news TV segments under trying working conditions. Over 15 local artists, sporting celebrities and social influencers were engaged to share their uplifting stories of Covid2019 solidarity and featured on ‘Happy News’. Viewers were encouraged to send in their own videos and moments from home too, many that were incorporated into the segments that aired.
In the special Vesak day segment of ‘Happy News’ legendary Kumar Sangakkara, former captain of the national team and the current president of the MCC, asked the public to join him and his family in celebrating Vesak to pay homage and to pray for the protection of those people on the frontline to keep people safe by lighting four oil lamps—each dedicated with a blessing for key workers. One for the health workers, one for the tri-forces and police, the other for those who did delivery and essential food services and the final lamp for the health and wellbeing of citizens of Sri Lanka and all over the world.
The Dentsu Grant Group launched a multi-platform social campaign to support the news broadcast and to share Happy News stories as well as crowdsource content. Due to the nature of the project, the teams embarked on the digital campaign with very little media budget allocated to it and achieved some extraordinary results to date. On Facebook, Happy News generated over 1.2 Million user reach. And in the last 28 days, Happy News has engaged with over 80,000 users on multiple platforms. During Vesak, Kumar Sangakkara’s video received 17,000 views on YouTube and a staggering 160,000 views on Facebook.
To learn more about the ‘Happy News’ campaign, visit www.happynews.lk or ‘Happy News’ on below social media platforms;
Facebook – www.facebook.com/happynewssrilanka
Instagram – instagram.com/
happynewssl YouTube – www.youtube.com/happynewssrilanka
TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@happynewssl
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Omnicom Advertising Asia assembles new regional leadership team
The group is betting that a blend of creative talent, cultural intelligence and AI-driven data can help brands stay relevant in the world’s most complex marketing region.
Asia has long been the market that humbles the overconfident. Omnicom Advertising Asia is determined not to be among them.
The group announced on Monday the formation of a new regional leadership team of six senior executives, reporting to Sean Donovan, president of OA Asia. The structure is designed to help brands navigate a fragmented, fast-moving consumer landscape and build what Donovan calls “long-term cultural relevance” — the kind that survives a news cycle, a platform shift and an algorithm update.
The team
The six appointments span creativity, innovation, strategy, intelligence, business development and marketing, covering the full arc from brand idea to commercial outcome.
Peter Khoury takes on the role of chief creative officer for OA Asia, Melissa Daniels becomes chief innovation officer, and Emmanuel Sabbagh steps up as chief strategy officer. All three take on expanded regional responsibilities while retaining their leadership positions at TBWA\Singapore.
Andreas Krasser broadens his remit to chief client partner for OA Asia, continuing simultaneously as chief executive of OA Hong Kong. Ellie Brocklehurst joins as chief growth and marketing officer, drawing on her previous stint as chief marketing officer for Asia at TBWA. Rounding out the team is S. Subramanyeswar, known in the industry as Subbu, who was appointed chief knowledge officer for OA Asia alongside his role as chief strategy officer of OA India, a position that followed the close of Omnicom’s acquisition of IPG.The pitch
The team will work in close collaboration with leadership across TBWA, McCann and BBDO throughout the OA Asia network, with a brief to cut through the noise of today’s consumer landscape and deliver creative solutions that, in the group’s framing, prove short-term performance while building long-term brand health.
Underpinning the new structure is OMNI, Omnicom’s AI-driven marketing intelligence platform. The platform draws cultural intelligence from across the group’s agency brands, with the stated aim of ensuring that data is not merely accurate but grounded in context — reflecting how people actually think, feel and behave, rather than how a spreadsheet might prefer them to.
Donovan frames the proposition in straightforward terms. “Asia is one of the most complex regions for marketers, but the opportunity here is immense,” he says. “We’ve built a team that simplifies the landscape, combining top talent with an Asia-first, future-focused mindset, and unprecedented access to resources.” The model, he adds, is designed to be plug-and-play, responding to client needs in collaboration with agencies and markets across the region. “More than expertise, it’s about giving clients the perspective, ambition and access to think beyond the next campaign.”
The new structure also strengthens connections across the broader Omnicom family, including its media, production and PR operations — a post-acquisition suite of capabilities that the group is evidently keen to deploy as a single, coherent offering.
In a region where consumer attention is fractured across dozens of platforms, languages and cultures, the real test will not be the org chart. It will be whether six smart people with the right tools can actually make brands matter. Omnicom is putting its money on yes.
