Oleksii Makeiev, Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany, has announced that the Berlin-based agency Lure removed all materials related to the advertising campaign for Latvia-based Russian media outlet Meduza following outrage over the use of images depicting Ukrainians affected by the war.

Source: Makeiev on Facebook

Quote: "Well, it seems we've stopped the winter invasion of medusas [referring to the media outlet - ed.] across Europe and Canada. I’ve just received a response from the creative director and founder of Lure regarding my letter sent yesterday.

The key point is that Lure has removed all campaign-related materials from the internet and instructed partners to immediately cease displaying them on any platforms.

'Halting the display of all materials related to the campaign' means the campaign is over.

Now, dear community, I ask for your help: we need to ensure the campaign is truly cancelled. So, please report here if you still see any videos or visual advertisements.

I’ll also contact our diplomatic colleagues in other countries where the shadow fleet of medusas has drifted with the creative current, and we’ll monitor our democratic sea together."

Details: Makeiev added that Lure has personally apologised to Mr Yaroslav (likely Yaroslav Bazylevych, whose photo was used in the campaign).

Background:

• On 1 February, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the use of images of Ukrainians affected by Russian aggression in an advertisement for the Latvia-based Russian media outlet Meduza. 
• The advertisement was created for Meduza by the Berlin-based agency Lure. The agency did not charge for its services. The advertisement was shown in Berlin cinemas and on outdoor displays.
• The video contained shocking footage of the war in Ukraine, including the funeral of the wife and daughters of Yaroslav Bazylevych, who lost his family in a Russian attack on Lviv.

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