John Lloyd, the founder of TV quiz show QI, has teamed up with designers Tappin Gofton to create an advertising campaign for newspapers in the digital age.
The campaign, ‘Papers aren’t just paper anymore’, was commissioned by Newsworks, the marketing body for the national newspaper industry, and is the first ever multi-media advertising campaign for the sector.
The six ads highlight the distinctive and important role that newsbrands play in our lives whilst celebrating the growing audience of what is now a multi-platform industry.
It also seeks to highlight the industry’s fluid relationship with social media and the age-old investigative role of newspapers in exploring and exposing current issues.
Lloyd worked alongside designers Tappin Gofton, best-known for their work with Coldplay, the Chemical Brothers and photographer Nadav Kander, to produce the campaign, which will run in all of the UK’s leading national newspapers, running for 12 weeks from today.
“We hope the campaign reminds people that newspapers across all platforms continue to play a hugely important and influential role,” said Rufus Olins, chief executive, Newsworks.
“There has been a lot of criticism of the industry and these ads tell the other side of the story. We’re thrilled with the commitment and work from John Lloyd and Tappin Gofton.”
John Lloyd, who has also produced Blackadder and Spitting Image, added: “If Rufus had asked me to write a newspaper advertising campaign to promote ‘newsbrands’ a few years ago, I would have thought he was mad. But, working with him closely for the last 12 months, my perception of the industry has totally changed.
“I now understand and fully support his vision to promote the press, not as mere paper but as essential multimedia newsbrands.
“A world without newspapers is truly unspeakable. I hope the campaign changes perceptions and makes people think – newspapers are a vibrant and innovative business, full of dedicated and passionate people, an industry that I have come to both love and admire.”
John Lloyd will be writing exclusively for Newsline this week, sharing his thoughts on the campaign and the future of national newspapers.
