CIF Turns Censorship Into Sponsorship, Becoming the Official Sponsor of ‘Dirty Mouths’
CIF Miracle Clean, known for effortlessly cleaning over 100 different surfaces, from stovetops to sneakers, has pulled off yet another miracle: scrubbing 'dirty mouths' to clean up monetisation for entertainment platforms. In a bold activation, CIF is taking its cleaning concept into new media territory by sponsoring swear words on podcasts, TV shows, and livestreams.
All to help clean up a big problem in humour nowadays: entertainment today is full of swearing, yet algorithms don’t always get the joke. Social media platforms like YouTube enforce strict policies, sometimes demonetising videos based solely on the number of curse words. Videos lose reach. Podcasts lose monetisation. Hosts lose deals. Not to mention that brands don't like to sponsor at all, due the fear of backlash.
While most brands shy away from explicit content, CIF saw an opportunity to turn the mess into something innovative: transforming censorship into sponsorship.
In the world of podcasts and entertainment, where swearing is often covered by the classic beep, CIF is changing the game. Now, instead of a BEEP, listeners will hear the unmistakable CIIIIIF, reinforcing the brand’s expertise in cleaning everything —even the dirtiest mouths. Instead of the usual censoring sounds, swear words will now be replaced by CIF’s signature sound. So, in that way, by replacing traditional censoring sounds, CIF ensures that content featuring strong language remains monetised, avoiding reduced reach or demonetisation.
This ground breaking initiative debuted on Broxada Sinistra, one of the most promising podcasts today, and will soon be featured on other major Brazilian podcasts, including CheveTalks, Missão PodDelas, Achismos, Inteligência LTDA, and Me Conte uma Fofoca.
The censoring beep has always been a hallmark of some of the most spontaneous and hilarious moments in entertainment. Many podcasters have also found creative ways to mask swearing to avoid issues with monetisation and content reach.
Podcasts have become an increasingly valuable platform for brands, offering a direct connection to an engaged audience. According to Stephanie Chan, YouTube’s Strategic partner manager, at SXSW 2025, YouTube currently reaches 1 billion monthly podcast viewers, with 84% of gen z listeners discovering new shows through the platform. This highlights the growing potential of podcasts as a powerful tool for brands to connect with a young, highly engaged audience, using authentic and easily engaging formats to create more direct and personalised communication.
“In recent years, CIF has strengthened its connection with the entertainment world, finding creative and authentic ways to engage with its audience. This campaign is a fun and unexpected way to highlight the product’s effectiveness in tackling even the toughest dirt effortlessly—always making life easier for our consumers. Plus, we’re leveraging the growing influence of podcasts in Brazil as a key media platform to expand our reach, ensuring that even more people get to know and experience CIF Limpeza Milagrosa (Miracle Clean). We’ve embedded our core brand messages in a light hearted and spontaneous way, proving that with CIF, cleaning can also be fun,” says Mariana Gonçalo, marketing director at Unilever.
Created by Droga5, CIF’s communication agency, in partnership with Initiative, its media agency, the campaign transformed the traditional beep into a branded sound. The initiative debuted on Broxada Sinistra, a podcast known for its bold humour and diverse guests, averaging 2 million monthly views. The episode entertained audiences with hilarious stories from the hosts, who fully embraced the campaign by being even more unfiltered—only to have their jokes promptly "cleaned up" with CIIIIF. The fun extended beyond the recording, sparking live engagement in the YouTube comments, where the episode amassed over 122,000 views and 10,000 interactions.
The campaign will also extend to major podcasts like Missão PodDelas (3.1 million subscribers), one of the most popular female-focused shows, and Inteligência Ltda. (5.1 million subscribers), ranked among Brazil’s top 10. CIF’s signature beep will also feature on other high-profile programs such as Achismos by Maurício Meirelles, CheveTalks—famous for its unique interviews inside a 1978 Chevette—and Me Conte uma Fofoca, where “Brazil’s most gossip-savvy LGBTQIAP+ duo” dishes on the latest celebrity news.
“Podcasters already use sound effects to mask swear words, ensuring their content retains reach and monetisation across platforms. Now, we’re ‘sponsoring’ these moments with CIF, replacing the classic BEEP with CIIIIIIF, reinforcing our brand positioning in a fun and light hearted way. This allows CIF to seamlessly integrate into Brazil’s rapidly growing podcast scene, expanding our reach and relevance,” says Ana Cavalcanti, executive creative director at Droga5 São Paulo.
The "Dirty Mouth Sponsorship" campaign also included a digital activation that really got people talking. CIF cleaned up the language of Craque Neto, one of Brazilian TV's most notorious foul-mouthed personalities, during a YouTube livestreaming on Os Donos da Bola, the sports show he hosts on Band. This helped amplify the campaign’s reach and sparked viral reactions on social media. In the content, Neto gave his unfiltered take on Brazil’s performance against Argentina—one of the biggest rivalries in football—and what was, until now, considered the biggest Brazilian football loss of the year. The campaign also capitalised on the 2025 Paulista Championship final between Corinthians and Palmeiras, which saw Neto’s beloved Corinthians emerge victorious
