Blog

AIDS conference roundup

Thousands of delegates and journalists from across the globe converged in Toronto for the 16th International AIDS Conference this week to once again thrash out solutions to the AIDS pandemic that has the world firmly in its grip.

Media need to get to grips with issues,  not just events

A large media fuss was made over the South African government’s initial refusal to accredit the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and the Aids Law Project ahead of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on AIDS (UNGASS), and then the subsequent grudging invitation to the TAC and the TAC’s refusal of it. But comparatively little has been written about what impact civil society might have at the upcoming assembly.

Guest blog: The art of spreading HIV/awareness through billboards

With HIV/AIDS infection rates ever increasing, awareness campaigns with alternative means of reaching people need to be developed.

South Africa has been the location for two mass media campaigns employing billboards as their communication tool: the "Break the Silence" art-based campaign and the loveLife advertising campaign.

Getting AIDS science right

This week, I sat in a workshop on reporting the science of HIV/AIDS, hosted by the Media, AIDS and Governance Project at IDASA and the Treatment Action Campaign. Clearly it's a complex subject and the workshop raised myriad challenges that need to be addressed.

Media should analyse loveLife’s funding cut

The Global Fund's recent decision to pull the plug on a $56-million grant to the loveLife campaign has renewed questions over the effect the campaign is having on South Africa's youth.