Social marketers often have to walk a thin line between making an unhealthy behavior seem unappealing and stigmatizing those who engage in that behavior. The Kaiser Family Foundation recently released a Public Opinion Spotlight on the topic of Attitudes About Stigma and Discrimination Related to HIV/AIDS that includes the fact that

Fear of being stigmatized by one's HIV status (or perceived HIV status) also appears to have at least some relationship to people's decisions about whether or not to get tested for HIV. About one in five say that if they were to be tested for HIV, people they know would think less of them.

In this way, a social marketing campaign promoting HIV testing could backfire by increasing the perception of stigma and thus reducing the number of people who get tested.

Liz Losh of Virtualpolitik let me know about an upcoming forum that's going to be happening in New York later this month that touches on this issue:

Selling Us to Ourselves:
Is Social Marketing Effective HIV Prevention?

Tuesday, September 26th
6:30 - 8:00PM

LGBT Community Center
208 West 13th Street (btwn 7th/8th aves.)
New York City
Free and open to the public

From bus shelter ads to give-aways in our communities, social marketing is becoming a larger part of community HIV prevention efforts. But is marketing an effective public health tool, or is it just another facet of consumer culture that sells our lives back to ourselves? Is it a vital means for reaching those who are not in the loop of community organizations, a way of refreshing the messages on AIDS after decades of efforts? Do some social marketing efforts have unintended consequences of stigmatizing community members?

Presenters will show recent social marketing campaigns that they have
produced or critiqued, and participate in a vibrant discussion with the audience on the pros and cons of these approaches.

Refreshments will be provided.

Speakers include:
Liz Losh, University of California, Irvine
Anthony Morgan, New York State Black Gay Network
Les Pappas, Better World Advertising, San Francisco
Kevin Trimell Jones, Black Gay Men’s Leadership Council, Philadelphia
Moderated by: Julie Davids, CHAMP

Co-sponsored by:
Black Gay Men’s Leadership Council, Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project (CHAMP), Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), LGBT Community Center, New York State Black Gay Network (list in formation)

For more information or to be added as a co-sponsor, contact
sonny@champnetwork.org.

I suspect that this forum is a response to this HIV campaign that was pulled in Philadelphia after concerns arose among the target audience that the campaign stigmatized black men. A similar forum was held in West Hollywood, Calif. recently when a backlash by HIV-positive men arose against the HIV (not fabulous) campaign because they felt it stigmatized them.

If any of my New York area readers attend, I hope you will report back on it. I missed the West Hollywood event because it was on the eve of the first day of school for my kids. I look forward to seeing what Liz will have to say about her appearance at the forum.

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On a different note, I am busy preparing for the Social Marketing University training that is starting on Monday, so I will be incommunicado until the middle of next week. We have attendees coming from around the world, and from a wide range of organizations. It should be an exciting event! I'm hoping to offer another training within the coming year and will keep you posted.


Technorati Tags: hiv, aids, social marketing, stigma