Change the Ref was founded by Manuel and Patricia Oliver, whose son Joaquin was one of the victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting in Parkland, Florida. Since the tragedy, the organization has debuted a number of bold, creatively-driven marketing moves, such as one voting campaign from McCann that resurrected Joaquin through deepfake technology to encouraged people to support gun safety legislation and the officials who back it. 

This campaign, however, may be the organization’s most brazen yet, putting gun rights advocates at center stage, quite literally. 

"We try different things in a very constant way," says Manuel Oliver. "We believe that by advertising the truth, people will start to see the number of lies that our system, along with the gun industry, has been using to manipulate Americans. Our campaigns are all based on hidden truths that take guts to express."

Buzzfeed reported that Lott said he had wanted to give more general life advice in his speech but was encouraged to talk about James Madison and background checks. "Unfortunately, the fact they lied to me many times is kind of illustrated by the way they edited and chopped up the video that’s there," he told them. "Is that the way we want to have political debate in the country? Where people lie and creatively edit what people say?"

The Olivers did not have contact with Keene or Lott during the campaign's production and have not connected with them since its debut, they say.

As for the riskiness of the campaign, "The word risk is not in our vocabulary," says Manuel Oliver. "When we lost our amazing son Joaquin, the perception of risk and fear became different, almost intangible."

Adds Patricia Oliver, "The real 'risks' that bother us are first, knowing that 100 people will risk their lives today due to gun violence and secondarily, that we are losing the battle against gun violence in our country."

“Preaching to the choir was no longer an option,” adds Sam Shepherd, EVP-executive creative director at Leo Burnett. “We needed to find new ways to force the conversation and challenge those who hold the power—or in this case, the microphone. And if that makes some people uncomfortable, we’ve succeeded."

Ultimately, “our goal is to begin the process of taking back control. Control over our fear of the NRA,” he adds. “Over what real confrontation looks like. And control over who can make a difference in this fight.”

In case you're wondering if any of this could get Change the Ref or Leo Burnett into legal hot water, "We consulted with trusted legal experts, including SmithDehn LLP, throughout the process," the agency's executive producer Ashley Geisheker says. And if you look through the law firm's clients, you'll find this guy.