PRESSing for the Truth

While global media provides ongoing coverage of the crisis in Gaza, organizations still struggle to cut through the noise and inspire action. This submission celebrates a pro-bono project for Free Press Unlimited (FPU), an Amsterdam-based advocacy leader guided by Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Their mission is to ensure independent news remains available to everyone, particularly where press freedom is under threat.
"PRESSing for the Truth" was a direct response to the targeted killing of four Al Jazeera journalists—Anas al-Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, and Mohammed Noufal—on August 11, 2025. FPU joined a coordinated effort by media outlets from over 50 countries to condemn the killing of over 200 journalists who play a crucial role in providing truthful information from Gaza. This project aimed to pressure the Dutch government into holding those responsible accountable.
The creative concept was born from the tragic subversion of the "PRESS" patch, a universal signifier of neutrality that has increasingly become a target. By integrating headlines directly into these patches within images of journalists mourning their peers, we created a visceral connection between the journalists' identity and the attacks against them. This unified visual language—including messages like "PRESSing for the truth isn't a crime"—was designed to be instantly recognizable, bridging digital activism and physical protest.
To ensure this message reached the highest levels of power, we developed a non-traditional placement strategy that prioritized political influence. We negotiated a targeted buy to dominate the specific commute from The Hague Central Station to Het Binnenhof. By launching on the day officials returned from summer recess, we made the human cost of the conflict unavoidable for key decision-makers.
Through a collective effort by FPU and other organizations, we successfully mobilized formal state action, leading the Dutch government to elevate media worker protection to the EU diplomatic agenda. This demonstrates that creativity rooted in human truth can achieve measurable results where it matters most.