OMSE's branding campaign helps B416 movement successfully advocate for raising social media age limit
By
Katy Cowan
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Summary
The article discusses how design studio OMSE created a branding and campaign identity for B416 (Before 16), a New Zealand grassroots movement advocating to raise the minimum age for social media from 13 to 16. The campaign successfully influenced legislative change, moving beyond traditional design work to become effective activism. The branding helped amplify the movement's message about protecting teenagers from the harmful effects of social media algorithms contributing to anxiety, depression, and self-harm.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledThe B416 project is much more than that, because what OMSE built didn't just look right... It worked. As in, changed the law.
The brief came from Before 16, a grassroots campaign pushing back against the addictive algorithms that have contributed to rising rates of anxiety, depression, and self-harm among teenagers worldwide.
The minimum age for social media has sat at 13 for years – a number that made sense once, in a different digital landscape.
The Auckland-based studio has built brands for businesses, campaigns, and causes. But their work with B416 – a New Zealand movement fighting to raise the minimum age for social media from 13 to 16...
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