POWA - "The Abused News"

Gender-based violence was a big problem in South Africa even before Covid-19, although it remained a fairly small blip on the media’s radar. When the pandemic broke out, the issue was buried altogether by Covid-19 news – but in a bitter irony, domestic violence increased during lockdown, as women found themselves trapped with violent men. To raise awareness of the situation, the association POWA (People Opposing Women Abuse) transformed a TV news broadcast with augmented reality, by slowly adding bruises and swelling to the presenter’s face. Meanwhile, on the banner that spooled across the bottom of the screen, Covid-19 news was replaced with information about the scourge of domestic violence and a message from the association. The operation flooded social media. Other TV stations and celebrities adopted the same approach. Finally, South Africans were confronted with the “other” plague afflicting their country.