Media Watch
Tag:
EDITIORIAL: The media breaks the awkward silence around sex & HIV
As a nation, we’re not very good at talking openly about sex. We may spend a considerable amount of time making references to, or thinking about the act, but despite its omnipresence, we barely move beyond the “what” and start to talk about the how, the who or the why of sex.
There is no time like Valentine’s Day, when we’re bombarded with thinly-veiled innuendos to reassess how we as a society engage with sex. If a report featured in the Mail&Guardian this week is anything to go by, then the answer is poorly.
Where we fail most dismally is in our communication with those who need it most – young teens about to make their sexual debut. According to the report published by SACMEQ, high school entrants do not know nearly enough about HIV to protect their health.
World AIDS Day Coverage: The Mail&Guardian
n the week prior to World AIDS Day The Mail&Guardian supplemented the newspaper with an abundance of HIV reports.SA’s approach to ‘underage’ sex is two-faced
Today the Mail and Guardian’s Mia Malan gets to grips with the struggle on how to address teen pregnancy, which sees conservatives and human rights approach activists at loggerheads.
Malan explores the rift between the two parties, who advocate different means of addressing the twin troubles of soaring teen pregnancy rates and HIV infection.
The article has quotes from those who believe that sex education and life skills programmes should be strengthened in schools and that condoms should be made available.
However conservative elements located in the health and education departments fear that these measures would encourage youngsters to have sex. They are reportedly sticking to their ‘abstain’ or ‘be faithful’ guns as the best way to prevent unwanted pregnancy and HIV.
ART, lies and videotape
It is estimated that over 300, 000 HIV-positive South Africans who could have lived long and healthy lives on ART, died from the effects of uncontrolled HIV infection, during the Mbeki-Manto HIV misinformation era.
The TAC’s campaign which fought and eventually won out against this menace is the subject of ‘TAC-Taking Haart’ a film reviewed in today’s Mail & Guardian by Shaun de Waal.
Questions around exclusive breastfeeding plan
The Mail & Guardian reports that doctors and HIV-positive mothers have voiced the opinion that the government’s new exclusive breastfeeding plan is good on paper but may not work in the real world.Dispelling HIV myths: Knowledge is power
The Mail & Guardian’s Bonitas health supplement does a sterling job of dispelling common myths around HIV.More on the foreskin furore
An article appearing in the Mail & Guardian makes sensationalist and incorrect comments around a study of circumcision and HIV prevention.
Businesses brush up on HIV
One of the few HIV-related stories to emerge over the last two weeks is around the role that corporates and employers could and should play in the healthcare sector, and specifically in HIV and AIDS-related care.Page 1 of 1 pages
