AFRICA: Reality TV takes on HIV

JOHANNESBURG, 5 May 2008 (PlusNews) - The show first hit the airwaves in October 2007 as part of a campaign by the African Broadcast Media Partnership Against HIV/AIDS (ABMP), a group of 53 broadcast companies from across Africa that have pledged to commit 5 percent (roughly one hour) of their daily airtime to HIV and AIDS content.

Member television and radio stations produce some of the content themselves, but also carry ABMP-produced content like "Imagine Afrika", which chose the 12 contestants from a pool of 10,000 hopefuls. Producer Mickey Dube said the show was driven by a hopeful vision of Africa's future.

The 12 contestants were broken up into three teams, located in west, east and southern Africa. Each episode presented the teams with a problem - for instance, how to help a child-headed household, how to conduct a voluntary HIV testing and counselling event, how to improve sanitation in an area - that reflected some of the large-scale problems on the continent.

Forgetting the fear factor

"Media is a catalyst that builds awareness and causes people to think about, talk about and make sense of HIV," Dr Ernest Darkoh, global health expert and former manager of Botswana's National Antiretroviral Treatment Programme, told the ABMP's annual workshop in Johannesburg, South Africa, at the weekend.

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