YouTube Is The New Milk Carton

There are three common 20th century items YouTube may displace in the early part of the 21st century. The television. The radio. And the milk carton.

While engineers and executives at Google are doing their best to make sure the world’s largest online video sharing site supplants the first two entertainment mediums, the Australian Federal Police is hoping the platform will make at least one use of the latter receptacle obsolete.

The law enforcement agency will be one of the first on the planet to launch a missing persons campaign by way of online video advertising on YouTube. Lara Sinclair at The Australian reports some geo-targeted ads served before YouTube videos viewed in Australia will display a photograph and description of a missing person and ask viewers if they’ve seen the individual. Those viewers will

then be prompted to answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. A click on ‘Yes’ will direct the viewer to an Australian Federal Police website, where he or she can provide information that will hopefully lead to the missing person’s discovery. A click on ‘No’ will display whatever video the viewer initially intended to watch.

Subscribe to get the latest creator news

Subscribe

Senior Art Director at VML David Jackson created the campaign for free. He conceived of the idea after watching a missing persons special on television and “started wondering about the modern equivalent to the milk carton.”

“All those faces will get to see the light again,” Jackson said to The Australian. “If even one person’s found it will have been worthwhile.”

The ad campaign is set to run from at least July 28 through August 3, which is Missing Persons Week in Australia.

Share
Published by
Joshua Cohen

Recent Posts

Newsletter platform beehiiv prepares for expansion with $33 million Series B

A major player in the burgeoning newsletter industry has made a sizable addition to its…

6 hours ago

Meta promotes original content on Instagram, launches bonus program on Threads

Meta has kicked off the week with a pair of announcements that should make its creator…

7 hours ago

Top 5 Branded Videos of the Week: MrBeast’s latest sponsored smash is fun for all ages

MrBeast continues to show us that he's in a league of his own as far as…

1 day ago

Chas Stahl joins Get Engaged’s GEM Studios to lead development of creator brands and IPs

Jellysmack and StyleHaul alum Chas Stahl has joined GEM Studios, the digital content production wing…

1 day ago

Rejoice, John Oliver fans: HBO is making full seasons of ‘Last Week Tonight’ free on YouTube

John Oliver appreciates that his fans can watch his late-night show on YouTube, and Last Week Tonight fans are…

1 day ago

Soccer media brand Footballco is coming to America with several key hires

Footballco is betting on the growth of soccer in the United States. Over the past few…

4 days ago