Aussies kick out migrants in digital awareness drive

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 18-Feb-08, 12:10

LONDON - Australians have kicked almost 400,000 migrants out of their country in a digital game that shows users the detrimental effect of losing migrants in social and economic terms.

'Kick a migrant' was created by Amnesia, the Australian arm of global digital agency Avenue A Razorfish, which was invited by Australian news website AdNews to create an ad that changed the negative public perception of migrants in Australia.

The aim of the viral internet game is to throw a migrant out of Australia, as far as the user can. However, when the migrant splashes down into the ocean, users are informed of the detrimental impact of this loss on Australia -- both socially and economically.

There are several migrants that the user can choose to throw out. If they toss "Kumar Singh", after he lands in the water a message appears saying: "What have you done? Kumar Singh came to Australia 10 years ago after graduating from university with a business degree.

"He now owns a convenience store and employs 10 Australian workers. Kumar is also the local Scout leader and a valued member of his community. Impact on Australian economy - $481,640. Total distance thrown - 568km."

Users are also told what their global ranking is in relation to how far they managed to throw their migrant. So far, around 375,000 migrants have been tossed.

Iain McDonald, Amnesia managing director, said: "We're deliberately targeting people who may be more anti-migrant. The message is delivered at the end -- where we reveal that migrants are real people that play a vital role in society and have a big effect on Australia's GDP."

A Facebook group called "I kicked a migrant right out of Australia!" has been set up for users to compare their best distances.