Observer trails relaunch with TV ad

The marketing campaign for the Observer's relaunch this weekend steps up a gear tonight with a TV ad debuting on Channel 4. In the ad Justin Edwards, who portrays hapless Labour MP Ben Swain in The Thick of It, plays a TV reporter delivering a series of rapidly edited news pieces to camera that become increasingly meaningless one-word soundbites. The commercial, by ad agency Wieden+Kennedy, aims to send up the frantic nature of 24-hour news culture, before a voiceover positioning the "new Observer" as a place to "pause, review and reflect". The ads ends with a plug for the serialisation of Observer columnist Andrew Rawnsley's new book on the Labour government in this Sunday's relaunch edition. The TV ad debuts tonight on Channel 4 and will air for two weeks on terrestrial and multichannel networks. Other marketing activity will include outdoor advertising in London and the south-east, direct communication with Observer subscribers, a sampling campaign for the New Review section of the paper and a 12-week retail presence. The Observer is part of Guardian News & Media, which also publishes MediaGuardian.co.uk. • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email [email protected] or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. • If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".