Breaking the silence through TV
Name: Hanae “Hana” Hayashi My second trip began with an interaction with young females age 15-16 in peri-urban area in Guntur, a town in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. I traveled there to observe three pre-tests, which are part of a series of pretests for UNICEF’s media campaign for HIV/AIDS prevention. Currently, we are working on producing new TV spots nationwide. Through the TV spots, we attempt to generate behavior change in young people. This campaign targets young unmarried sexually active males and females between 15-19 years old. They have low self risk perception and have been most vulnerable because of their high risk behavior. By the beginning of the next year, we plan to produce three TV spots. One for the females and two for the males. UNICEF proposed two creative routes for the each spot. This campaign will be initiated with TV spots and will be extended to other media channels like radio, bill board and folk media to maximize the reach. In order to convey the most effective message, UNICEF conducts careful research and analysis with a research company as well as a media company before producing the spots. In the peri-urban area in Andra Pradesh, we conducted one focus group discussion with young females age 15-16. At the beginning of the interview to make the informants comfortable, the moderator begins their conversation casually. Thanks to the moderator’s efforts, as soon as the discussion started, informants felt at ease and express their opinions openly. As a result, we gleaned their initial thoughts. In addition, we moved to the rural area to implement further research in the state. In this area, we conducted one focus group discussion with young females age 17-18 and also an in-depth interview with a 35 year-old female with the same procedure. Through using a multi-pronged approach, we could thoroughly obtain their personal opinions for the TV campaign.
These interviews spurred a succession of discoveries to improve the spots. All of the interviews were tape-recorded and will be further analyzed by researchers and UNICEF staff. The common theme which I found through these sessions was the informants’ strong preference for the TV spots. They look forward to watching the TV spots soon. Sometimes in India, especially in rural area, it can be difficult for young females to talk about HIV/AIDS and sex-related issues due to cultural mores. Therefore, this media campaign will be a catalyst to break the silence. Actually, the young females said in unison that they would like to teach their friends a key message from the trial version of the TV spots. The TV spots express the importance of avoiding sex without a condom. In addition, the mother of teenage daughters told us that she wants to show the TV spots to her daughters because they portray a realistic situation for girls that are facing the risk of HIV/AIDS infection through unprotected sex. The most renowned nun to ever work in India, Mother Teresa, said that “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened.” In addition to many candles which UNICEF has already lit, each subsequent conversation due to these TV spots among young females will be a fiery candle. In order to light candles as many as possible throughout India, our effort will continue.
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