Column Children are denied a birth certificate. And Shakira has a new lover. And VAT is set to rise. The media are destroying discernment en masse, and those who are driving the decline of civilization, the petty bourgeoisie, like to depict it, fearfully, in orgiastic images. Burning Rome, etc. This probably wants to conceal the fact that dehumanization is progressing precisely because it makes use of banality, of details, of rules. In Switzerland, children are born who are denied a birth certificate by the authorities. Not bad? Without a birth certificate, these people do not legally exist. Although they exist in flesh and blood, they remain officially unborn. The world does not know them. They won't get a passport anywhere, they can't go to school, they can't get married ... You guessed it: we're talking about children of foreigners whose papers are incomplete. But the birth certificate does not give them any rights beyond their legal existence. And according to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, every child worldwide has the right to a certificate that seals their birth.
So how come? There are said to be around 200 such cases. The civil registrars who refuse to issue birth certificates cite regulations that are the result of stricter immigration and asylum laws. There is probably room for maneuver, and many officials make use of it. What drives the others? One of them told the Observer, who researched the story in 2006: "Our hands are tied." Is it the inhumanity of the subject? Anticipatory obedience, waving to the manic-repressive Minister Blocher. Sheer partisanship, the perfidy of spies, secretly exercising power behind the back of a society that, I hope, would hardly approve. Or does this refusal even reflect a hatred of oneself, a self-image in which man, the politikon zoon, degenerates into a bios? This is precisely the secret project of the new right.
It also gives us a few insights into the state of the media. When you read the reports about it, you don't quite know what to be more shocked about: The atrocity or the indifference with which our colleagues deal with it. Of course, outrage is a sterile feeling. Uncool anyway. Anyone who dares to refer to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child realizes this. Children are denied a birth certificate? Certainly, it has been researched and reported. And Shakira has a new lover and VAT will rise.
We live in a society of horizontal perception. Everything is equally unimportant. The main thing is to keep our heads down. It would be naïve to conclude that the media are insignificant. Their effect is precisely that they make horizontal perception the only possible one, that they destroy the ability to differentiate on a massive scale and tell themselves and everyone else every day: Move along, there's nothing to see.
P. S. March 26 marked the tenth anniversary of the entry into force of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in Switzerland.
P. S. 2: 25 years ago, a book was published by a Jewish emigrant in the USA that collected such small reports. It was called "Daily Fascism." It's still available, even on Amazon. Price: 1 cent.
Oliver Fahrni is a freelance publicist.

 Basel's free newspaper Baslerstab is getting a new editor-in-chief in Mischa Hauswirth. He will take over from Markus Sutter on July 1. Hauswirth is currently head of the Basel editorial team of the free newspaper Heute. He was previously head of the Blick office in Basel. Sutter, who has been editor-in-chief of the Baslerstab since June 2002, is moving to Berlin as the Basler Zeitung's German correspondent (see ).

Advertising brokerage Despite P lease, AZ Medien founds two companies for advertising acquisition. The AZ Medien Group has founded its own company for the "procurement of advertisements for newspapers and magazines". The new company is called Media Factory AG and has been in existence since March 14, 2007. The Factory's board of directors is made up of people who are already well-known within the AZ Medien Group, such as Jürg Schärer, Chairman of the Board of AZ Medien, publisher Peter Wanner, Ueli Eckstein, COO and Head of Print Media, and Christoph Marty, Head of Crossmedia/Key Account. Roger Knabenhans, who evaluated and built up the online classifieds market for the AZ Medien Group, serves as the company's managing director.
A bundle of questionsSo far, so good - but what does AZ Medien want with its own advertising agent? After all, it already has an advertising department for its magazines, and it ceded newspaper management to Publicitas just two years ago.
But the processes are not enough in Rüebliland: AZ Medien AG has also renamed its company Neue Medien AG, which was previously responsible for selling radio and TV advertising, AZ Crossmedia AG. "Sale and brokerage of advertising and advertising space" is now stated as the statutory purpose in the commercial register.
But what is the point of all this? Is publisher Peter Wanner dissatisfied with P, similar to Basler Zeitung Medien (BZM), which - also on a P lease - founded two acquisition companies of its own some time ago, Key Media and BZM Werbe AG?
Key Media has been active as an intermediary, cross-media provider and media agency since 2005. And BZM Werbe AG markets the Basler Zeitung and its large circulation in the Basel region. This is because P is apparently not trusted to be able to put equal effort into the BaZ and the Basellandschaftliche Zeitung (also under P management), which belongs to the Mittelland Zeitung.
So did they choose a similar path in Aarau? There are some indications that this is the case. But the AZ Media Group is cautious. Christoph Marty, a member of the board of directors of the new Media Factory, confirms that the company was founded and its purpose changed, but he does not want to explain the matter further and rejects any comparison with BZM. "Our project is not aimed in the same direction at all. Key Media is not a model of business conduct for us to build on," he says.
Markus Knöpfli

Magazines The Beobachter is relaunching and wants to give more space to family issues. "We are convinced that the solution to many of society's problems lies within the family," writes Editor-in-Chief Balz Hosang in the editorial of Beobachter, which will be published in a new layout for the first time on March 30. The most obvious change is a new and independent family section with reports on education, school, consumption, health and leisure, each on twelve pages. The new section is funded in line with proven "Beo" practice, with the editorial team researching stories on the one hand and cases from the advisory service being taken up and dealt with editorially on the other. The range of topics is broad. For example, the first issue deals with how an elementary school in Wil in the canton of St. Gallen is already practising the school of tomorrow, when parents really annoy their children, how to talk to children about their private parts, that many children walk in shoes that are too tight and so on. The concept is not intended to compete with the family magazine Wir Eltern, explains publishing director Roland Wahrenberger. "We want to give an existing target group more content and, of course, attract new readers." Wahrenberger believes that the positive family theme should also interest the advertising market. So far, the response from advertisers has been "extremely positive".
Younger readership in focusThe new family pages are also a pleasant contrast to the other sections of the paper. The "Beo" has long been a traditional institution and addresses the problems of society (and its readership) in a skillful mix of advocacy journalism and concrete life help from the in-house advice service. The family section is also supported by offers on the Internet and supplemented by an advice hotline, which can be used by doctors, for example, to provide information. The relaunch also includes the prominent placement of readers' voices on the first pages of the magazine. With these changes, those responsible are also focusing on a younger readership.
The Beobachter is generally expanding its reporting, which also has consequences in terms of personnel. "We are in the process of recruiting new people," says Editor-in-Chief Hosang. The size of the recruitment is not yet clear, but according to Hosang it will be a mixture of more budget for freelance journalists and new editorial positions.
Still no impetus from GermanyAfter the takeover of the Jean Frey Publishing Group, to which the Beobachter belongs, the new owners of Axel Springer Verlag were enthusiastic about the traditional paper. In Berlin, they are dreaming of all kinds of extensions to the Beobachter brand, for the time being without any concrete consequences. The current relaunch of the paper took place entirely without the involvement of Axel Springer. "We started planning last fall, there was no impetus from Germany yet," confirms Editor-in-Chief Balz Hosang. However, the relaunch is not the last step in the further evolution of the Beobachter. The "Beo" is expected to go online with a completely revamped web portal by late summer.
 
 
René Worni

Sports: Boxing Day, which traditionally falls on St. Stephen’s Day, plays an important role in both the sporting and social life of Bern. This year, for the first time, Boxing Day will take place on Easter Monday. The advertising agency Contexta is now building excitement for this massive Easter event in Bern, Biel, and Thun with radio spots and F12-sized posters. And it’s doing so with a straightforward visual featuring flying scraps—or rather, eggshells.

Food Chirat was looking for the super cucumber. Werbewoche reported on it. Frank Hauerken likes old brands and traditions. Because there is love and a lot of work behind them. When he first encountered the Chirat brand, the Foods Director of Unilever Switzerland spontaneously thought of it as a "slumbering diamond." He pays tribute to the work of generations who have invested a lot of heart and soul in building up the brand. Chirat has been around since 1854. "It is my commitment to bring out the best in the brand," says Hauerken. Those aren't empty words. When a consumer survey showed that Chirat was being forgotten by younger consumers, Hauerken wanted to do something about it. He didn't want to write off the generation of 18- to 24-year-olds, and he didn't want to simply accept the brand's loss of image. The Unilever man was self-critical: "It was a mistake not to actively promote the brand for years." Even the strongest brand gets lost in nirvana if you don't nurture it. The German wanted to get Chirat back on track. Which was a difficult decision: Unilever has to nurture many big international brands. "But you only have one wallet," says the man in charge. Because of the exceptional brand history, his strategists and he agreed that a larger campaign would be worthwhile.
Chirat is looking for the super cucumberUnilever gave the advertising agency JWT+H+F the task of creating a TV campaign. Unilever wanted to build on the successful campaigns from the eighties. The Chirat cartoons and the Chirat melody are classics in Swiss advertising history. "A cultural asset," says Creative Director Remy Fabrikant of JWT+H+F.
The Zurich agency designed commercials. In a similar style to the old ones, only more colorful, more modern, with the same jingle and the famous "Knacki" at the end. The creatives from JWT+H+F staged the cucumbers in a casting show ("Chirat sucht die Super-Gurke" Werbewoche 20. 9. 2006). The spots parody the casting show boom. The motto: "Only the crunchiest make it into the jar." The spots accompanied the casting formats of 3+ and Swiss television.
In addition to funny commercials, Unilever presented the pickle jars in a new dress. The British-Dutch company launched a new packaging design. Frank Hauerken: "The design was dusty. We wanted to clean up the shelf." Unilever approached the task cautiously. The boss is not a fan of the wrench methodology. Nestlé had shown how not to do it with Cailler. The PET packaging flopped with consumers.
Hauerken wanted to modify only what was necessary and stick to the pattern recognition. Apart from the "old-fashioned pictures", only little was changed.
Six months later, Frank Hauerken draws a positive balance. He has realized many campaigns in his career: "Rarely have I seen such clear figures." He is impressed by the result, having initially thought it impossible to make a difference in the stagnating market.
Ultimately, the campaign achieved what advertisers dream of. It had a significant effect on sales figures. Overall, Unilever achieved a 6.5 percent increase in volume, according to market research firm AC Nielsen. Despite all the factors and trends working against the pumpkin vegetable, Unilever was able to sell more thanks to the campaign, even though Chirat is more expensive than the competition and the battle for consumers is predominantly fought on price. Unilever had to learn this painfully at the beginning of the campaign. A competitor launched a volume print campaign at the same time as the commercials were broadcast, triggering a stock buy. As a result, Chirat sold 32 percent less. This action initially distorted the effect of the TV campaign. Its full effect was seen in the following months. Thanks to the commercials, Unilever was able to significantly increase sales figures, and the crunchy cucumber is once again at the top of the list among young consumers.
Hauerken attributes the success of the campaign to the good foundation of the product. Rarely has he managed a brand with such robust figures. In addition, strategy and creation were optimally coordinated.
Hauerken remains critical, however, despite the success. It was clear to him that he had bought in "awareness" with the campaign. At the same time, however, he makes it clear that big brands need continuous communication. In the market environment of canned vinegar anyway. This is not a classic market for innovations, and there is little market potential. It is important to maintain the position and to keep reminding consumers that Chirat is one of the crunchiest.
Which they really are. Unilever produces directly next to the cucumber plantations in Turkey. Which doesn't make them Swiss cucumbers per se. "But the Chirat brand is genuinely Swiss," adds Frank Hauerken.
Christian Lüscher

Advertisements 86 entries were submitted to the Swiss Press Association for the Young Creative competition "Only an advertisement can do that". The two winning entries are the "ice cream voucher" (Martin Arnold and Beni Haslimeier, Wirz Werbung AG) and the formula "e=mc2" (Isabelle Hauser, advertising agency Advico Young & Rubicam). The winners will travel to Paris on May 31, 2007 - to the "best YET" (Best Young European Team). There they will compete with the winning teams of an analog competition in eight other countries and fight for a ticket to Cannes.

 Thanks to growth in international markets and in electronic media, Publigroupe recorded a 3.8% increase in sales. EBIT amounted to CHF 61.8 million, an increase of 7.7 percent. Profit increased by 12.2 percent on a comparable basis and amounted to CHF 53.9 million, according to a press release issued by the advertising intermediary. According to the statement, the company excluded one-off income from the sale of investments and changes in the scope of consolidation, which mainly related to acquisitions in the electronic media and local guides in the second half of the year. Overall, all business segments are well positioned: An improved EBIT for the PubliPresse division (+15.9 percent), the international Publicitas Promotion Network division (+18.5 percent) and the business in development segment, which was able to reduce its loss by half. The PubliDirect division posted a 15.3 percent lower EBIT due to its expenditure on the launch and expansion of the Local.ch online portal.
The increase in sales is attributable to acquisitions in connection with the expansion of electronic media and local guides. Publigroupe is thus positioning itself in pronounced growth segments with strategic implications. With its portfolio of electronic media and online services, the Group recorded growth of over 60 percent in the year under review. Further commitments in this area are to follow. The dividend payout is to be increased by one franc per share to 12 francs. The payout ratio will rise from 37% to 53%.

 The battle for market share in the multi-billion dollar advertising business being waged by internet portals Yahoo and Google has now spread to the mobile network. Industry experts estimate the growth figures for the mobile advertising market to be gigantic: Within four years, mobile advertising is expected to reach one billion people. Advertising revenues are estimated at over two billion euros annually. As the news agency SDA reports, industry leader Google presented a program specially designed for cell phones on Tuesday, in which the start page can be set up according to the tastes and needs of the user. For example, the current share prices or the program from the cinema around the corner appear according to taste. Because the mobile Google window also remembers previously visited websites, typical web searches should be possible for the user with just a few clicks.
Yahoo, on the other hand, will be offering the OneSearch search system from the summer, which users can use to find ads from local providers. By collaborating with other companies, the service is intended to offer the possibility of navigation. The program package, called Mobile Ad Network, is intended to enable the advertising industry to tailor advertising specifically to small cell phone screens.

The Swiss Press Association's competition for young creatives took place for the second time. Up-and-coming advertisers from small and large agencies submitted 86 entries for the Young Creative competition "Only an advertisement can do that". On Wednesday, March 28, the winners were honored at Bar Hard in Zurich. The two winning entries were the ice cream voucher by Wirz agency youngsters Martin Arnold and Beni Haslimeier, and the E=mc2 formula by Isabelle Hauser, who works at advertising agency Advico Young & Rubicam. The winners will travel to Paris on May 31 for the best YET (best Young European Team). There they will compete with the winning teams of an analog competition in eight other countries and fight for a ticket to Cannes. But there is also a prize for the other shortlisted entries. They will appear as part of Switzerland's largest advertising campaign, which will promote the advertisement in the Swiss press until the end of the year. Finally, the public will vote for the best advertisement. The winner of the Audience Award will be honored at the conference of the Swiss Press Association on January 8, 2008.

 Swiss creatives "going abroad" to Berlin for the ADC competition has led to much discussion and divided opinions about this point-collecting exile. The results show that the small agency Walker took a big step into the world. For the remaining participants, the discussion surrounding such participation remains open. "The Swiss have recognized that a market is opening up in Germany. That's why they are taking the opportunity to introduce themselves here. And we welcome this, because it means more competition for us," explains Michael Preiswerk. The spokesman of the ADC Germany board and managing partner of the GPP advertising agency in Stuttgart was born in Switzerland. At the press conference for the awards ceremony, he was patriotic - and therefore slightly disappointed that the Swiss agencies invited for the first time only submitted 111 works for the ADC Germany showcase. The Austrians, who were also new to the competition, narrowly beat "us" with 127 entries. Austria was also a little luckier when it came to winning. Four silver "nails" (as the "cubes" are called in Germany) as well as four bronze and four shortlist places went to the descendants of the Habsburgs.
 
The Helvetians collected a total of five nails. Pius Walker and his team won two silver and two bronze. One of these was a silver nail for Amnesty International. The rest, plus four shortlist awards, went to Fleurop, with Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett taking the fifth nail in the coffin with bronze for Mary Woodbridge. Wirz was enough for a nomination on the shortlist with the photographer's film for Mobiliar, which has already won a Lion in Cannes and several other international awards.
 
As "the smallest advertising agency in the world", Walker landed in 10th place among all advertising agencies in the ranking of this competition as a consolation for Switzerland. You can find out more in the current issue of Advertising Week number 12.
 
Andreas Panzeri

 Gross advertising investment in Switzerland rose by 8.3 percent in February 2007 compared to last year. They amounted to a total of CHF 259.2 million, as Media Focus writes in its monthly report on Monday. Internet advertising, advertising in consumer magazines and in the daily press saw above-average growth. Advertising pressure stagnated in the other media groups. The only exception is cinema, which recorded a sharp drop in investment.  
In terms of advertising markets, the federal vote on March 11 had a major impact. Political campaigns recorded an increase of 107%. Non-profit campaigns (+55.8%), IT (+57.7%) and finance (+31%) also recorded strong growth. In contrast, tobacco (-80%), energy (-30.3%) and beverages (-21.5%) fell sharply. Migros, Coop, Swisscom, Toyota and Protecter & Gamble booked the most advertising in February 2007.