GMHC, GLAAD Want Graphic HIV-Prevention Ad Pulled
Over the weekend, Steve posted about a graphic HIV ad from the New York City Health Department which warns of dementia, anal cancer, and severe osteoporosis using a set of alarming images.
The PSA is meant to encourage condom use, but now the Gay Men's Health Crisis and GLAAD want the ad pulled because of concerns it could further stigmatize those living with HIV and AIDS.
“It really paints this picture of gay men as these sort of disease-ridden vessels, and so the message is really sort of, ‘Stay away from gay men,’” said Francisco Roque, director of community health for GMHC. Roque said the ad had a “horror movie” like quality with eerie music that appeared to demonize gay men.
In a statement, the city’s Department of Health said, “Silence is no solution when the number of new HIV diagnoses among” men having sex with other men is up by more than 50% in eight years.
“In developing this video spot, we tested various approaches in focus groups,” said the statement. “The spot was informed by that process and by lessons learned from our successful anti-smoking efforts. It was also carefully vetted for technical accuracy.
The Health Department says it has no intention of dropping the ads, which will run on cable and network TV for two weeks this month, and two weeks next month.
Watch the ad, if you missed it, AFTER THE JUMP...
What are your feelings about the ad? Please let us know in the comments.
(warning: graphic)
I think they should run them. The reality is HIV is on the rise and young people today are so far removed from the true horrors of AIDS that they need some reality introduced into the debate. Those of us living with HIV are tough enough to handle any fallout that may come about as a result of ads like this but I think a certain amount of reality is definitely called for.
Posted by: Jeff | Dec 14, 2010 10:21:39 AM
This is exactly the sort of ads that should have been running for years.
I am so tired of seeing muscle queens in all those AIDS drugs ads run by pharmaceutical companies.
Deal with the reality of HIV!
Posted by: should have been | Dec 14, 2010 10:23:50 AM
I appreciate the concerns of GMHC and GLAAD, but I think this in an appropriate and effective ad. We have a crisis in the gay community. Gay men of all ages, but particularly younger gay men, seem to have decided that safe sex isn't as important as it once was. People seem to think -- falsely -- that with modern meds HIV/AIDS is just another pesky disease like diabetes.
It isn't.
We need to get the message across that while barebacking may seem exciting at the time, HIV/AIDS isn't at all.
If GMHC and GLAAD are concerned that this ad will have a backlash against those living with the disease, then we need to address. But please let's not bury our heads in the sand AGAIN and pretend that this isn't happening to our community, friends and family.
Posted by: Bucky | Dec 14, 2010 10:26:09 AM
Keep running the ads. HIV is expensive to treat and the drugs have side effects. Everyone I've known in the last 10 years who's been infected with HIV has died of HIV related issues, drugs or no drugs.
All of this namby pamby hand holding has mislead an entire generation of gay men into thinking it's treatable and indulging in dangerous behavior.
My generation had their moment of fear, this generation needs to understand WHY HIV is dangerous.
Posted by: Polyboy | Dec 14, 2010 10:27:08 AM
Run the ads. It's not as if the "It's OK if if you seroconvert, you can just go on the cocktail [and all its side-effects]" type ads have done a damn thing.
Posted by: Henry Holland | Dec 14, 2010 10:27:12 AM
These ads should absolutely continue to run. The fact that we are still seeing rising numbers of infections and a cavalier attitude toward sero-conversion in almost all age groups is appalling. The fact is that GMHC and GLAAD have been ineffectual at stopping the spread of this disease. Maybe someone telling the WHOLE truth about it will have an effect.
Posted by: Matt | Dec 14, 2010 10:27:40 AM
HIV and AIDS should have always, first and foremost, been treated as a serious public health hazard. It became politicized. Of course I understand it gave obvious ammo and opportunity to homophobes and other gay enemies. But this shouldn't be sugar-coated. Other STDs aren't. Indeed, when have you heard of cancer being sugar-coated?
And as an aside, greater effort should be expended on HIV/AIDS education in the urban minority community, where it's at levels far in excess of whites or Asians. I understand there are cultural sensitivity issues, but the pussy-footing around needs to stop.
Posted by: ratbastard | Dec 14, 2010 10:28:49 AM
PS to my previous comment, If GMHC and GLAAD have their heads that far up 'where the sun don't shine' that they oppose these ads, then they are as useless as HRC and should all be gone.
Posted by: Matt | Dec 14, 2010 10:30:54 AM
Show 'em, and show 'em often. Too many young gay men have been thinking for years "Oh, if I get infected, I'll just pop some pills, then go rock climbing like in the ads." They need the same reality check folks over 40 had, watching thousands of healthy young men get sick and die--it was a terrible, terrible thing, but it also galvanized thousands into coming out, started the national dialogue about health care, helped create some major works of art ("Angels in America" for starters), etc. Folks need to be shaken out of their complacency again.
Posted by: Dback | Dec 14, 2010 10:32:22 AM
Totally agree with every other opinion on here. The ads are scary because HIV is a scary disease that nobody should take lightly. Should we not run anti tobacco advertising because it stigmatizes smokers and people that already have lung cancer?
Posted by: JP | Dec 14, 2010 10:34:02 AM
But..but....aren't they disease ridden vessels? Isn't their "viral load" checked every so often?
Nothing inaccurate in that video. I say keep it.
Posted by: Dandy | Dec 14, 2010 10:34:21 AM
These ads should run. The guys in this ad are representing the younger generation. This generation is seeing a major increase in HIV infections. Us 1980's 'old timers' saw the brutal first wave effects on full blown AIDS. Newer cocktails today have lessened the effects and have elongated life. Thank god. But there were early 80's ads that also showed the horrible effects of AIDS. Lesions, dementia, ect. Let these ads run. If it scares ppl into practicing safe sex, then amen.
Posted by: Greg | Dec 14, 2010 10:35:50 AM
My only problem with the ad is that it's not scary enough.
Posted by: justiceontherocks | Dec 14, 2010 10:45:03 AM
I'll take the chance that this prevents spread of the disease over the breach of political correctness and cultural sensitivity any day.
Posted by: Anthony | Dec 14, 2010 10:49:50 AM
Two thumbs up.
Posted by: tcw | Dec 14, 2010 10:54:28 AM
The wording and ignorance of some of these comments astound me. I plan on living a longer, fuller, and happier life than all of you, even with HIV.
Posted by: James | Dec 14, 2010 11:14:00 AM
Yeah. I agree with the above. I think it's perfectly fine. It's informative and in my opinion it does not portray gay men as "disease-ridden vessels" or give a message to "stay away from gay men". It give a clear reality of what HIV can do to your body and it should be run.
Posted by: JJ | Dec 14, 2010 11:15:25 AM
Finally. This is an ad that should be required viewing for all children in middle and high schools and for all men and women worldwide. Even with modern drugs, HIV (and the drugs' side effects) is still and death sentence and has huge negative consequence for anyone infected.
Posted by: Dean | Dec 14, 2010 11:21:17 AM
I've recently tested positive. At 39! You would have thought I should have known better than to engage in risky behaviour after 20 years and more of practising safe sex. Wish these ads had existed before.
Posted by: Ghislain | Dec 14, 2010 11:21:19 AM
Anyone who has read "The Normal Heart" or seen it performed understands the small minds at GMHC that Larry Kramer had to deal with. The kind of gay men who don't want any negative information out there because it'll make us "look bad."
AIDS SHOULD have a stigma. Too many young people today think its just a manageable condition. I see ads every day that show the inside of a cancer-ridden lung. Do we worry about making smokers feel stigmatized?
The epidemic is more than 25 years old and we're still seeing epic numbers of gay men being irresponsible when it comes to sex. Maybe the time for hand-holding is over.
Posted by: dizzy spins | Dec 14, 2010 11:26:07 AM
My partner avoided contracting HIV at the height of the plague, but we believe he must have been exposed to the HPV virus, as he is now fighting anal cancer, which we believe to be HPV-related.
Posted by: Anonymous for now | Dec 14, 2010 11:27:26 AM
Just one glance at the near unanimous opinions here shows how TOTALLY out of touch both GMHC and GLAAD are. Virtually every single person here agrees this ad is incredibly important and absolutely necessary. I am sick of the disgusting glamourizing of "Party n Play" in our gay media, on billboards in our community and in our magazines-- which does FAR MORE damage to our public persona than this absolutely necessary PSA does. And you'll never see GLAAD complaining about that.
Posted by: iawl | Dec 14, 2010 11:37:56 AM
Honey, anal cancer IS like a horror movie so let the form match the content. A friend of mine with HIV and HPV-induced anal cancer was facing having his entire penis removed from the spread of the cancer.
If they public health officials don't add a strong, graphic voice to the discussion all we see are pharma ads showing muscle-men on sailboats which make HIV look like a fabulous vacation.
Posted by: David | Dec 14, 2010 11:38:45 AM
I agree with just about all the previous posts.
The gay community will do fine when it comes to what, if any, backlash there might be as the results of these ads.
The bigger picture, which I am glad people here are seeing even in GMHC and GLAAD don't, is that there are far too many people out there who seem to think there's a magic pill which will make it all better, and that's not the case. AIDS isn't supposed to be pretty or sexy, and while drug companies continue to make it so, people need to be reminded of the reality.
Posted by: DR | Dec 14, 2010 11:42:23 AM
I found the ads offensive and i tend to agree with James, I plan on living a longer, fuller, and happier life than all of you, even with HIV.
Posted by: George | Dec 14, 2010 11:44:10 AM