Introduction: Low awareness of clean living led a company, through one of its product brands, to start a social program through a donation campaign to improve sanitation and poor quality of health in Nusa Province Eastern Tenggara (NTT— Nusa Tenggara Timur ), Indonesia. An advertisement was then aired frequently in the national media to support the campaign. However, this announcement was protested by people representing NTT citizens. Methodology: Employing Karatani’s (2003) theory of representation and Schiappa’s (2008) concept of representational correctness with a discourse analysis approach, the research critically analyzes the politics and problems associated with Lifebuoy’s social campaigns that sparked protests. and denials from various NTT community groups. Results: This study found that the landscaping of advertisement representation problems included the problems of ‘talking about’ and ‘speaking for’. Furthermore, the power of racial prejudice or stereotypes of the people of eastern Indonesia was permanently attached to poverty and underdevelopment. Discussion: However, the protesters’ representation was also problematic and political. There were numerous struggles over agendas and identity politics among protesters. Therefore, Lifebuoy’s social campaign not only served as an object of protest, but at the same time also criticized the protesters. Conclusions: This study provides essential lessons for brands about the urgency of mapping and reading grassroots political voices when launching and implementing a social program, so that various obstacles are well anticipated.
Introduction: Low awareness of clean living led a company, through one of its product brands, to start a social program through a donation campaign to improve sanitation and poor quality of health in Nusa Province Eastern Tenggara (NTT— Nusa Tenggara Timur ), Indonesia. An advertisement was then aired frequently in the national media to support the campaign. However, this announcement was protested by people representing NTT citizens. Methodology: Employing Karatani’s (2003) theory of representation and Schiappa’s (2008) concept of representational correctness with a discourse analysis approach, the research critically analyzes the politics and problems associated with Lifebuoy’s social campaigns that sparked protests. and denials from various NTT community groups. Results: This study found that the landscaping of advertisement representation problems included the problems of ‘talking about’ and ‘speaking for’. Furthermore, the power of racial prejudice or stereotypes of the people of eastern Indonesia was permanently attached to poverty and underdevelopment. Discussion: However, the protesters’ representation was also problematic and political. There were numerous struggles over agendas and identity politics among protesters. Therefore, Lifebuoy’s social campaign not only served as an object of protest, but at the same time also criticized the protesters. Conclusions: This study provides essential lessons for brands about the urgency of mapping and reading grassroots political voices when launching and implementing a social program, so that various obstacles are well anticipated.