IDENTITY Scores Two Awards At The 2016 AMMAS: Mumbrella Media Coverage

Meat & Livestock Australia’s diversity work wins at Multicultural Marketing Awards

By Simon Canning,
Mumbrella, 7 December 2016

Meat and Livestock Australia’s (MLA) controversial spring lamb ad which called on Australians to come together over lamb has won the People’s Choice award at the 2016 Multicultural Marketing Awards.

The ad, by The Monkeys, opened with the statement that too many “perky white males” were contributing to a lack of diversity on TV screens.

It went on to feature people from diverse backgrounds, including Indigenous Australians, Indians, Greeks and people from the LGBTQI communities.

The ad was the focus of a series of complaints by viewers, some of which claimed it was ‘racist against white people’. All complaints were subsequently dismissed.

MLA’s campaign also won the Communications award.

During the awards presentation, SBS presenter and Logie Award nominee, Lee Lin Chin, declared she was “Australia’s best Asian” in a tongue-in-cheek video promoting SBS’s new cultural training courses.

Other winners on the night included Telstra, Cricket Australia and Western Sydney University for its ‘Unlimited’ campaign.

NSW Minister for Multiculturalism, John Ajaka said the awards were a celebration of marketing that embraced all communities.

“The outstanding quality of this year’s winners is a testament to all the creativity and imagination of marketing and advertising professionals who are breaking barriers and promoting diversity on our screens and across society,” Ajaka said.

The full list of winners:

Communications – Meat & Livestock Australia, The Monkeys, UM, One Green Bean and Identity, ‘Bringing EVERYONE Together Over Lamb’
Public Sector – NSW Multicultural Health Communication Service and NSW Organ and Tissue Donation Service, ‘Life Giving Stories: ‘Storytellers on the Ultimate Gift of Life’ Multiplatform Strategy Organ Tissue Donation Multicultural Campaign
Big Business – Telstra, ‘A place to belong/Indigenous Recruitment Campaign’
Small Business – Why Documentaries, ‘From Foe to Friends’
Business Diversity – Access Community Services, ‘#OurStories Campaign’
Arts and Culture – Access Community Services for the Brisbane Multicultural Arts Centre
Sport – Cricket Australia, ‘A Sport for All – Cricket Campaigns’
Communities – SBS Radio, ‘SBS Arabic24’
Education – Western Sydney University, ‘Unlimited Campaign’
Youth – SBS Radio, ‘National Languages Competition’
Peoples’ Choice Award – Meat & Livestock Australia, The Monkeys, UM, One Green Bean and Identity, ‘Bringing Everyone Together Over Lamb’