Can you imagine a less comfortable situation for media rivals from Google, Facebook and a host of media owners and agencies, than being locked up behind bars together for 12 hours?
Well, 20 of adland’s finest (and AdNews editor and Mumbrella founder Tim Burrowes), have pledged to spend a night behind bars as part of youth charity WhiteLion’s annual Bail Out campaign.
The ‘inmates’ being voluntarily locked up alongside UnLtd CEO Paul Fisher include PwC’s Megan Brownlow, Google boss Jason Pellegrino,OMD CEO Aimee Buchanan, IPG Mediabrands CEO Danny Bass, Facebook’s Ellie Rogers, The Guardian boss Ian McClelland, RadiumOne’s Adam Furness and IAB CEO Vijay Solanki.
The charity aim to support at risk young people with practical support such as mentoring programs, education and employment. It works with people who often come from extremely abusive families, including sexual, drug or alcohol abuse.
It's aim is to break the cycle of substance abuse, criminal activity and incarceration by providing young people at risk with opportunities.
Each of the inmates will don yellow UnLtd overalls and be locked up in a cell overnight. After arriving at former juvenile detention centre, Yasmar Facility, everyone will be stripped of possessions, fingerprinted, photographed and subjected to interrogation before witnessing a mock court proceeding to share the experience of many young people who find themselves on the inside.
Everyone must raise a minimum of $1000 to make bail to get released from the cell in the morning. So at the very least we should be able to raise $20,000 (but we can do much better than that!). Each inmate has their own fundraising goal so put your hand in your pocket to help AdNews editor Rosie Baker raise her total - we can't have Mumbrella Tim raising more!
Cell doors will be slamming shut on 5 May, so there’s four weeks to fundraise ahead of the big day.
Trade media rivals Rosie Baker, AdNews editor, and Mumbrella founder Tim Burrowes, will also be among the inmates - no doubt making everyone feel even more uncomfortable than they already were.
You can donate money to the cause here. http://bit.ly/unltdbailout
UnLtd CEO, Fisher, says “We often talk about how we can bring the industry together to unite around a social cause. It turns out inviting 20 of the most senior industry leaders to spend a night in jail is all it takes! The response to this event by these individuals is a testament to the commitment across all sectors of our industry to both raise the profile of a great charity and much needed funds, while sharing a unique experience, in this case, being locked up for a night.
“While I’m sure we will have some fun, we’re also there to learn how young people who choose a path to improve their lives need the support of charities like Whitelion who in turn need our support to fund their programs and services across the country. Please support this great event by bailing us out!”
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop me a line at rosiebaker@yaffa.com.au
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