Campaign marking bombing of Jewish center wins Yahoo! prize

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA) — The Bread of Memory campaign to commemorate the 1994 bomb attack on the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires won the Yahoo! Big Idea Chair Award.

The award to Ogilvy & Mather Argentina, which developed the campaign, was announced by Yahoo! Argentina on Nov. 9.

Launched in July to mark the bombing, the campaign featured Food Factory chef Tomas Kalika sharing his bread recipe, which is said to contain ingredients that help improve memory. The “bread of memory” recipe and the names of the victims of the attack were distributed through social media, radio, TV, newspapers and magazines.

Loaves of bread also were distributed in Buenos Aires on July 18, the date of the bombing in 1994 that destroyed the AMIA building, killing 85 and injuring hundreds.

“We love this award because it has prestige and also because the public voted. It’s a very special reward to an ad honorem [pro bono] work made by many people,” said Javier Maximiliano Maddalena and Javier Mentasti, creative directors general of Ogilvy & Mather Argentina.

The campaign beat out public service campaigns from General Motors, Kraft foods and Nike.

AMIA was the second terrorist attack in Buenos Aires on a Jewish institution: On March 17, 1992, a car bomb destroyed Israel’s embassy, killing 29 and injured 242.

Iran is believed to be behind both bombings. No one has been convicted in the attacks.