Sri Lankans tend to read their newspapers in the early morning and in the evening, times when dengue-carrying mosquitoes are most likely to strike. Sri Lankan newspaper Mawbina teamed up earlier this spring with Leo Burnett Sri Lanka for a public health campaign targeted at preventing dengue fever during National Dengue Week.
The paper made news when a special print run that used ink mixed with natural mosquito-repelling citronella oil sold out by 10 a.m. and increased newsstand sales by 30 percent.
The campaign also included mosquito-repellent patches for children and public service posters in bus stops soaked in citronella oil to keep commuters bite-free. Check out the video for more about the campaign, a novel attempt to save lives and the dying newspaper industry in one fell swoop.
