Twitch, Ad Council and Others Partner to Bring Suicide Awareness Livestreams

The Ad Council is partnering with game streaming platform Twitch to offer livestreams in support of the Seize the Awkward campaign, which encourages young people to speak out about mental health.The Seize the Awkward campaign encourages teens and young adults to have difficult conversations about mental health by prompting them to reach out to friends or peers who may be at risk for suicide.From Sept. 18 to 20, Twitch streamers Achievement Hunter, MissKyliee, Natalie “ZombiUnicorn” Casanova,” negaoryx, OMGitsfirefoxx, schviftyFive, and others will hold charity fundraising streams on their Twitch channels and will encourage donations for the Seize the Awkward campaign.Square Enix will also host a livestream of “Life is Strange: Before the Storm” featuring voice actors Rhianna DeVries (Chloe), Kylie Brown (Rachel), and Katy Benz (Steph) from the game on the stream. The episodic game deals with adolescent friendships, mental health, and social issues, making it an ideal title to stream for the conversations taking place around the campaign.September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and as the common start of the back to school season it is notably “characterized by transition as young adults return to school or depart for college for the first time, making the Seize the Awkward message of checking in with a friend especially timely and relevant,” according to the press release.Lisa Sherman, president and CEO of the Ad Council commented on the Twitch partnership as well as the other Seize the Awkward campaign movements with other digital partners like Reddit, Shine, and Tumblr.“This extraordinary group of leading digital, social and experiential partners will give us the opportunity to reach teens and young adults where they are at a time when they may need to hear this critical message most,” said Sherman. “Each of our September activations offers a unique opportunity to authentically connect with young adults and provide the necessary resources to start important and potentially life-saving conversations.”