Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Reuters NewMedia - December 1, 2005
The feature-length "Transit" tells the story of eight young people whose lives are intertwined, and through a surprising twist highlights the danger of contracting the HIV virus even when it seems there is little risk.
Spanning Russia, Mexico, Kenya and Los Angeles, the story is being shown on all MTV's channels to coincide with World AIDS Day, with a potential audience of more than one billion people.
It is also being shown by around 50 broadcasters, including one in Afghanistan and several across Africa.
"The idea was to offer to and even challenge broadcasters to interrupt programs for the film, with no strings attached," said MTV Networks vice chairman Bill Roedy.
"More than one half of infections are below the age of 25 and that's our audience and we have global distribution beyond any other media outlet," he told Reuters. "Young people look to us to be their voice."
Roedy said the advantage of a film, as opposed to concert events that the network has held on World AIDS days in the past, was that it was possible to get out a number of educational messages at one time.
He said the film covered not only the risk of contracting HIV, but also the importance of testing, the social stigma associated with AIDS, the dangers of drug abuse and discrimination in many societies.
Asked if MTV, which has been criticized for promoting sexually permissive behavior, was the most appropriate medium to preach AIDS awareness, Roedy replied: "We are able to take advantage of our connection with young people."
Almost 5 million people were infected by HIV globally in 2005, the highest jump since 1981, which took the number living with the virus to a record 40.3 million, UNAIDS said recently.
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