Bauer Media announces next phase of initiative

Bauer Media says with the rise of mental health issues associated with social media and the decreasing trust in social platforms from both consumers and brands alike, it is announcing the next phase of its Where’s Your Head At? initiative, focusing on supporting safer social media use.

The new campaign, revealed by Bauer Media Audio UK CEO Simon Myciunka, will launch next May during Mental Health Awareness Week with the aim to empower the nation’s use of social media. Teaming up with the mental health charity YoungMinds, Bauer Media says its portfolio of audio and publishing brands will offer its audiences practical resources, information and expert guidance.

This will include a special simulcast across all its UK radio stations – a first for Bauer Media – and articles throughout its magazines. Bauer says it will also introduce a free-to-access, talent-fronted course for children and parents to take, helping to ensure that every young person has the knowledge they need before they enter the online world. The initiative will also be supported by mother of Brianna Ghey, Esther Ghey, who stressed that “the moment you give a kid a phone, they are exposed to the whole world – the good, the bad and the ugly. As a society, we don’t do enough to educate and empower ourselves, let alone young people, when it comes to being safe online.”

Bauer Media says the Where’s Your Head At? campaign comes as referrals to mental health services have reached record highs, having increased by a staggering 71% in the last five years. Rates of anxiety and depression in young people have also risen 70% in the past 25 years, with a YoungMinds survey finding that 66% of young people reported negative mental health impacts from its use, often hindering sleep and learning.

Simon Myciunka, CEO, Bauer Media Audio UK said: “The impact social media is having on mental health is a crisis that’s heavily affecting our society, and as a media owner that reaches over 27 million people across the UK every week, we believe that it’s our responsibility to do something about this. Our Where’s Your Head At? initiative successfully campaigned for mental health first aiders in every workplace and we want to do more. We’re delighted to partner with YoungMinds on this campaign and hope that together we can unite our audiences, empower the way people use and interact with social media and drive change.”

Simon Kilby, MD, Bauer Media Advertising, who teased the upcoming campaign last month, added: “We need to be very careful as an industry that the next generation do not look back and say that we were asleep at the wheel with social media. Our industry has a responsibility to educate and help audiences to navigate this new environment – so we encourage brands, agencies and commercial partners to get in touch and support us in our journey.”

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