CNN launch new campaign against Fake News

In a new campaign, CNN has taken a stand on fake news with a new Facts First Campaign.

CNN also released a Mission Statement which said: “Facts are facts. They aren’t colored by emotion or bias. They are indisputable. There is no alternative to a fact. Facts explain things. What they are, how they happened. Facts are not interpretations. Once facts are established, opinions can be formed. And while opinions matter, they don’t change the facts.”

Many are reading this campaign as a pushback against Donald Trump’s regular accusations of CNN as fake news with the Hill stating: “CNN appears to be taking a swipe at President Trump’s attacks on the media”.

“This is an apple,” the ad explains, over a photo of the iconic red fruit. “Some people might try to tell you that it’s a banana. They might scream ‘banana, banana, banana’ over and over again. They might put BANANA in all caps. You might even start to believe that this is a banana. But it’s not, This is an apple.”

The final image is CNN’s logo accompanied by the slogan “Facts first.”

“CNN has never been more relevant than we are now,” CNN Worldwide’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer Allison Gollust told Variety of the new campaign. “There’s a conversation happening around journalism and media and the First Amendment. It’s happening right now. We felt compelled to participate in that conversation with a brand campaign that reminds people who we are and what we do and why we do it.”

CNN President Jeff Zucker also wrote a note to staff stating: “In recent months, I’ve been approached by many of you suggesting that we do a marketing campaign for CNN. While significant research shows that our brand, despite consistent attacks from Washington and beyond, has never been stronger, we heard you and we agree. In fact, CNN has never been more relevant, and the institution of journalism has never been more important to the national conversation. As a result, we think there is no better time to take a clear stand for who we are and what we believe in.”

CNN worked with Agency Figliulo & Partners agency on the ad.