LEADING MEDIA AND
OTHER CORPORATE ALLIES ENCOURAGE AMERICANS
TO BE “GREATER THAN AIDS” ON WORLD AIDS DAY
New and Expanded Partnerships Under National Greater Than
AIDS Campaign Reach Those Most Affected With Information and Resources
Wednesday,
November 30, 2011
– As the world marks World AIDS Day (December 1) in this 30th year
of the epidemic, Greater Than AIDS announces scaled up partnerships and
collaborative efforts with leading media and other corporate allies, community
organizations, and state and local health departments to increase knowledge and
understanding about HIV/AIDS in America, encourage actions to prevent its
spread, and reduce the stigma surrounding the disease.
“HIV
isn’t what it was 30 years ago. We have
the power to end it,” said Tina Hoff, Senior Vice President and Director,
Health Communication and Media Partnerships, Kaiser Family Foundation, which
provides strategic guidance and day-to-day management for Greater Than AIDS. “Greater
Than AIDS leverages the resources of the public and private sector to connect
those most in need with information and services.”
Phill
Wilson, President and CEO of the Black AIDS Institute, co-founding Greater Than
AIDS partner, commented, "30 years of AIDS is enough. We have the tools to end the AIDS
epidemic. It only requires each of us
doing our part. I am proud that SiriusXM
Radio, OUT Magazine, Walgreens and
our other partners and collaborating organizations have stepped up to do their
part.”
Among
the announcements from Greater Than AIDS today:
- SiriusXM encourages open discussion on air, offers resources online: SiriusXM is teaming up with Greater Than AIDS to raise awareness and offer resources to millions of people across the country with special programming throughout the year on SiriusXM OutQ, the nation’s first and only 24/7 LGBT radio channel, and African-American issues talk channel The Power. These channels will provide an open forum for medical experts, pioneering activists and listeners to share their stories and perspective on the continued battle against HIV/AIDS, and to debate and discuss the state of the progress in the LGBT and African-American communities and beyond. Information, resources and
tips/advice on where people can find help in their community are available online at www.siriusxm.com/greaterthanaids.
- OUT Magazine Partners
on New HIV/AIDS Guide for Gay Men: Greater Than AIDS and OUT Magazine have teamed up to produce an in-book, 8-page
informational guide on HIV/AIDS for gay and bisexual men for distribution in
the December 2011/January 2012 double issue of the magazine. The co-branded
guide is part of a broader corporate commitment by OUT Magazine’s parent company, HERE Media, to Greater Than AIDS,
which has included more than $500,000 worth of donated media placement since October
2010 across OUT, The Advocate, HIV Plus,
and gay.com, as well as a jointly branded online information portal at: www.gay.com/greaterthan
“I am pleased that OUT has teamed up with the
national Greater Than AIDS movement to reinvigorate our community’s response,”
said Aaron Hicklin, editor-in-chief of OUT Magazine. “Together, we aim to get
out information, confront stigma, and rally support around this preventable and
treatable disease.”
- Walgreens Encourages
Customers to be Greater Than AIDS: Walgreens, the nation’s largest drug store
chain with more than 7.500 stores in all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto
Rico, is teaming with Greater Than AIDS to place new in-store signage, radio
and pharmacy receipt messages and other informational resources in more than 550
stores in heavily affected areas throughout December. During the week
encompassing World AIDS Day, Walgreens will also showcase Greater Than AIDS
messaging on the company’s digital billboard at One Times Square -- the
nation’s largest -- that rises 341 feet above midtown Manhattan. Since
launching a collaboration on World AIDS Day 2010, Walgreens and Greater
Than AIDS have distributed more than 600,000 co-branded Greater Than AIDS
products in over 550 Walgreens stores across 250 cities. Additionally,
Walgreens teamed up with Greater Than AIDS and EBONY magazine to distribute
more than 2.4 million HIV/AIDS information guides to EBONY readers and
community organizations across the country. More information is available
at:www.greaterthan.org/walgreens
“Our pharmacists are
listening to concerns, developing important relationships and putting community
pharmacy in a great position to be even more effective and relevant to those
with chronic conditions, wherever they live,” said Walgreens pharmacy, health
and wellness division president Kermit Crawford. “And we are certainly
proud to continue our work with Greater Than AIDS in distributing information
and providing additional services and resources to the areas that are impacted
by HIV and AIDS.”
- Medical Students Make
HIV/AIDS a Priority: The Student National
Medical Association (SNMA), the oldest and largest student-run organization
focused on the needs and concerns of medical students of color, has joined the Greater
Than AIDS coalition. Together, SNMA and
Greater Than AIDS will work to educate the association’s more than 6,000
members (including medical and pre-med students, residents and practicing
physicians) on HIV/AIDS, including the importance of discussing and
encouraging HIV testing between providers and patients; expose SNMA members to
careers in HIV/AIDS primary care and infectious disease; promote cultural
competency amongst SNMA members in HIV/AIDS care; and engage SNMA chapters in
community service events focused on HIV/AIDS.
The partnership builds on the SNMA’s long history of service to
underserved communities.
“For over 47 years, the Student National
Medical Association has worked to address the needs of underserved communities.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is affecting these communities in such a disproportionate
way that we cannot be silent in this area,” said SNMA National President
Michael G. Knight. “By partnering with the Greater Than AIDS campaign, our
members will work to become the leaders and change agents that our patients,
neighbors and families can depend on to address this vital issue.”
- Special World AIDS
Day Messaging: Several
Greater Than AIDS partners are planning special promotions to mark World AIDS
Day:
- CBS
Outdoor will feature Greater Than AIDS PSAs on its network of 140 digital
billboards in 30 markets nationwide on December 1st.
- American
Urban Radio Networks and Radio One local and nationally syndicated programs
such as The Russ Parr Morning Show and The Doug Banks Show are dedicating
airtime to HIV/AIDS on World AIDS Day as part of the companies’ broader
commitment to the campaign. These radio programs will run PSAs, post
information on station websites and social media, and conduct interviews with
Greater Than AIDS ambassadors.
- The
National Basketball Association’s D-League teams in Eerie, PA, Hidalgo, TX, and
Boise, ID are integrating special Greater Than AIDS promotions into their games
on December 1, including in-arena signage, giveaways and social media cross
promotions.
- Hundreds
of community organizations from San Francisco to Philadelphia are integrating
Greater Than AIDS messages into World AIDS Day events with free informational
materials and interactive activities from the campaign.
Since
the campaign’s launch in 2009, an unprecedented coalition of media has joined
together to support Greater Than AIDS. More than 10,500 national TV PSA airings
have been placed by FOX, BET, Logo, and NBA TV, and more than 20,800 local TV
PSA airings have been placed by CBS, NBC, and Google TV stations, representing
a total of 260 hours of airtime. More than 52,800 radio PSA airings have been
placed by American Urban Radio Network, Clear Channel Radio, CBS Radio, Emmis
Communications, and Radio One, amounting to approximately 400 hours of airtime.
More than 15,000 outdoor postings have been provided by CBS Outdoor, Clear
Channel Outdoor, and Blue Line Media in 35 priority markets. Leading monthlies,
including The Advocate, EBONY, ESSENCE, Heart & Soul, HIVPlus, OUT, POZ, UPTOWN,
and VIBE are provide ongoing visibility to the campaign in the form of PSA
placements and editorial coverage, as well as online PSA placements. Greater Than AIDS is also working with state
and local departments of health and community foundations in more than 15
states to expand the reach of the campaign in hard hit areas through joint
events and special promotions.
AIDS in
America
As the
AIDS epidemic enters its fourth decade, according to 2011 national survey by
the Kaiser Family Foundation, two in five Americans – including three in five
Black Americans – now know someone living with HIV or who has died from
AIDS. More than 1.1 million people are
living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S. today – more than at any time in the history
of the epidemic. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), one in five of those who are positive does not know it.
HIV/AIDS
is both preventable and treatable -- early HIV diagnosis and treatment helps
those who are positive live longer and healthier lives, and also reduces the
spread of the disease. Yet, one in three
Americans with HIV is diagnosed late – within a year of an AIDS diagnosis – making
these treatments less effective. The
U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) identifies stigma as a major
contributor to the spread of HIV, keeping people from seeking information,
speaking openly, using protection, getting tested and treated and otherwise
acting to protect themselves and those they love.
About
Greater Than AIDS
Greater
Than AIDS is an unprecedented collaboration among a broad coalition of public
and private sector partners united in response to the HIV/AIDS crisis in the
United States, in particular among Black Americans and other disproportionately
affected groups. Through a national
media campaign and targeted community outreach, Greater Than AIDS aims to
increase knowledge and understanding about HIV/AIDS and confront the stigma
surrounding the disease.
The
Kaiser Family Foundation -- a leader in health policy and communications --
provides strategic direction and day-to-day management, as well as oversees the
production of the media campaign. The
Black AIDS Institute -- a think tank exclusively focused on AIDS in Black
America -- provides leadership and expert guidance and directs community
engagement. Greater Than AIDS is
developed in support of Act Against AIDS, an effort by the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to refocus attention on the domestic
epidemic. Additional, financial and
substantive support is provided by the Elton John AIDS Foundation, Ford
Foundation and MAC AIDS Fund, among others.
http://www.greaterthan.org
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