PRESS RELEASE from the
ACTON INSTITUTE
CONTACT: Eric Kohn at [email protected]
ACTON INSTITUTE ANNOUNCES $300,000 BEIJING OLYMPICS BROADCAST AD CAMPAIGN ADVOCATING FOR THE RELEASE OF HONG KONG DEMOCRACY ACTIVIST JIMMY LAI
Ad campaign promotes upcoming documentary “The Hong Konger,” highlighting Jimmy Lai’s extraordinary struggle for freedom.
GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. (Feb. 4, 2022) — The Acton Institute, an international nonprofit whose mission is to promote the study of faith and freedom, today announced a new $300,000 Beijing Winter Olympics broadcast ad campaign promoting their upcoming film The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai’s Extraordinary Struggle for Freedom. The film highlights Hong Kong’s hostility toward freedom of the press, freedom of expression, and human rights. The film advocates for the release of Hong Kong business leader Jimmy Lai.
Here is the link to the 30 second Olympic ad spot released Feb. 2, 2022, amassing 25,000 YouTube views in less than 24 hours.
Lai Chee-Ying, also known as Jimmy Lai, is a successful Hong Kong entrepreneur, media leader, and democratic activist who fled, young and penniless, to Hong Kong from mainland China. Lai eventually founded Apple Daily, one of the most well-read newspapers in Hong Kong.
Lai is best known for his pro-democracy activism and has come under fire from the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP, for challenging its overreach in Hong Kong.
Lai was convicted in a Hong Kong court on April 2021 of “unlawful assembly” during the 2019 pro-democracy protests, and received a 14-month prison sentence. In December 2021, he was convicted of participating in a banned candlelight vigil commemorating the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre. He is currently awaiting a third trial on additional charges.
The ad campaign includes a media buy in 27 broadcast television markets and will run during the Opening Ceremonies, Olympic News coverage, Olympic games coverage, The Today Show, and the Closing Ceremonies.
Lai has commented notably on communist government tactics, saying, “If they can induce fear in you, that’s the cheapest way to control you and the most effective way, and they know it. The only way to defeat the way of intimidation is to face up to fear and don’t let it frighten you.”
This film brings needed attention to these issues.
“Jimmy’s fate is in our hands,” said Kris Mauren, co-founder and president of Acton Institute and executive producer of the upcoming film. “His cause must not die in a prison cell—for freedom is not merely his cause, but the cause of all Hong Kongers, the Chinese people, and indeed all humanity.”
To learn more about the upcoming film and Acton Institute, visit: thehongkongermovie.com
For bookings, interviews, or for an advanced look at the film, contact Eric Kohn at [email protected].