Last year, TietoEVRY, a Nordic digital services and software company, tried to imagine a world in which hateful words are replaced with more considerate ones in an attempt to spark global conversation around cyberbullying. Aiming to find a solution to this problem and as a result of this thought of theirs, the brand developed “The Polite Type,” a freely downloadable font — which can be used as an educational tool — that makes us think twice before typing some words.

Creative agency TBWA\Helsinki‘s work is our focus during this week’s #ThrowBrandThursday, which worked together with the brand, the Children and Youth Foundation, and digital studio Great Apes to shape the anti-bullying font, in an attempt to eradicate this phenomenon.

More than a third of today’s bullying takes place online and the number tends to rapidly increase according to a UNESCO report. Amid the pandemic, which led to the adoption of online learning and virtual classrooms, young people have even greater access to technology and information which can be used for good causes. On the other hand, this online world creates a perfect environment for cyberbullying to evolve. 65% of young people who took part in a series of workshops organized by the foundation in conjunction with this project said they have experienced this form of bullying. In remote workshops during spring 2020, more than a third of young people said that hate speech increased during the pandemic.

This information provided by the teenagers was then used to pour the foundation of the vocabulary. The anti-bullying font recognizes offensive words and hate speech and replaces them with more neutral ones. The idea behind this font is to make the users reflect on the true meaning of the words. The first version of the font was coded in English because the team behind the campaign intended to spark global discussions on creating a responsible online culture.

“Through this concrete action, our purpose is to promote equality and inclusion. We want bullies to rethink the words they use and the actual meaning behind them. Inclusion, diversity, and the utmost respect for people are at the core of our values at TietoEVRY. ‘The Polite Type’ supports our vision of creating a safe and equal environment with digital solutions,” says Kia Haring, Global Head of Communication and Sustainability at TietoEVRY.

“Bullying is especially damaging when it comes to children and young people. Young people don’t have the same psychological tools as adults do to deal with hateful comments, and it can leave long-lasting emotional scars. I hope that our cause acts as a wake-up call for all audiences to consider how bullying could be tackled. Being polite and respectful should be the default option whether online or offline,” Haring continues.

The Polite Type is taught to recognize hateful English words. Once a word is typed, the machine will substitute it with an inoffensive one. But there are words that don’t have a literal translation or their meaning can’t be replaced with just one word. In this case, the font censors the words by blurring them. As the library is always changing with the language itself, the brand is kindly asking people to find words that are not in the vocabulary and contribute to helping The Polite Type expand.

Credits:

Client: TietoEVRY

Agency: TBWA\Helsinki