Revealing the digital world as a double edged sword for UK youth

February 14, 2018 Written by

On Tuesday 6th of February more than six months of planning came to a head as Safer Internet Day was celebrated across the globe.

Working with the UK’s official organiser of the day, UK Safer Internet Centre, we were briefed to make sure UK Safer Internet Centre was front and centre in all #SID2018 media conversations, so we needed a plan that would cut through the noise.

Knowing that many would release a story that focussed purely on the negative effects of the online world, we worked with UKSIC to develop a story that felt honest and positive for young people, not patronising.

Working alongside the UKSIC team, we surveyed young people across the UK to highlight the positive role that technology plays in their friendships and the support systems they use when navigating their online relationships.

Armed with a strong story and stats, we launched a full-scale national, regional, broadcast and online sell in. We co-ordinated our sell in with key Safer Internet Day partners including the BBC Own It, BT and Liverpool FC to maximise the impact of the day.

Knowing it would be a competitive news day, we secured briefings with key media in advance to ensure we were best placed to land quality coverage.

The results

• We secured extensive media coverage on Safer Internet Day with a total reach of over 531million
• The UKSIC’s research and spokespeople were featured in broadcast coverage across the day including BBC 6 o’clock News, national and regional BBC Radio stations, Cbeebies Radio, ITV News and Sky News
• We secured coverage with major nationals including Huffington Post, Mail Online, The Sun, The i and The Independent
• UKSIC spokespeople were interviewed and quoted over 30 times, using our research as a springboard for discussions around young people’s online lives