November 30, 2009

World AIDS Day

How Media Shape Public Beliefs on HIV

Dear Friend,

On World AIDS Day, December 1, we honor those journalists around the globe who work year-round to shed light into the dark corners of the HIV pandemic. Internews has worked in Africa, India and Southeast Asia to foster accurate and effective coverage of HIV/AIDS. The article below shows how Kenyan journalists increase the tolerance and understanding that are essential to saving lives.

Kenyan TV Journalists Expose Cultural Practices That Spread HIV/AIDS

Married at 13, HIV-Positive and Widowed at 14

"When I was informed I was HIV-positive, I shared the news with my husband. He warned me against disclosing my status to anyone. I did not dare defy his orders," says Tatu Saidi, a 14-year-old widow from the Coast Province of Kenya.

As a subservient young wife, Tatu was aware her husband had other relationships but could not act. "My husband was immature and did not understand the difference between being single and being married. He continued to behave as though he did not have a wife," says Tatu.

Uninformed about birth control, young Tatu became pregnant soon after marriage. It was during one of her prenatal checkups that she learned that she was HIV-positive. Her husband died a few months later, of what Tatu believes were AIDS-related complications.

Tatu’s story is one of several that were produced during a ten-day training session that Internews conducted in September for six television journalists in Kilifi District in Coast Province, where HIV infection is on the rise. (More)

Internews Helps Craft Text Message on HIV/AIDS for Ethiopians

Internews Network helped develop a World AIDS Day SMS that will be sent to more than 2.5 million people in Ethiopia from the President of Ethiopia, Girma Woldegiorgis.

The text message says, "On the occasion of the WORLD AIDS DAY, let us all think of HIV/AIDS to access prevention, treatment, care and support."

When the message is sent from the national telco, ETC, the SMS will reach all mobile phone subscribers in the country, estimated at between 2.5 and 3 million people. (More)

Resources for Reporting on HIV/AIDS

Manuals developed by the Internews health reporting team on teaching HIV/AIDS reporting and communication techniques are available as free downloads (requires registration) and for purchase.

• Teaching Radio Journalists to Report on HIV: A Manual for Trainers, edited by Mia Malan
• Teaching Effective Media Relations to NGOs, PLHIV and Government Communications Officials: A Manual for Trainers, by Mia Malan

Video: Journalism for Better Public Health

Against a backdrop of misinformation and stigma on HIV/AIDS, Internews has provided training and mentoring to more than 1,000 journalists in developing countries to fight a virus that has killed millions. (Watch a short video)

Internews is a nonprofit organization that empowers local media around the world to provide quality news and information for their communities. Internews has worked in over 70 countries and trained over 80,000 people. Internews has specialized programs to improve reporting on the environment, humanitarian crises, and public health.