Popular Media Representation of the HIV and AIDS Community

14/05/2022

14/05/2022

My timeline with my personal experience with HIV and AIDS and historical turning points. It is unfortunately not much personal experience, but everyone starts somewhere and with the growing use of technology and research there is no excuse for the lacks of conservations and misinformation spread seen anymore. We need representation to normalize these conversations and spread truthful information.

14/05/2022

14/05/2022

As a 22 year old college student I am guilty of getting most of my news through social media such as instagram stories and Twitter. And I know this form of media consumption is the same for my peers and generation. However, this form of media consumption leads to a lot of misinformation to be spread around and contributes to affirmative bias we may have. Imagine if more Instagram influencers talked about HIV and AIDS? Or more celebrities like the Kardashians talked about HIV? Older generations lives through the height of the AIDS crisis. And while this formed hateful and violent stigmas around the virus and the LGBTQ community, it was being talked about. It seems nowadays we are not even talking about HIV and AIDS. This is why representation is so important. Especially in age of growing technology and a growing social media presence. With more representation through influencers and public figures the more we can fight for the normalization of open conversations about s*x and s*xual health such as protection methods and testing.

14/05/2022

Approximatley 1.2 million people in America have HIV. Where is the representation?

13/05/2022

In 2018 film, Bohemian Rhapsody, we are once again reminded about Freddy Mercury’s journey in his band Queen and his life has HIV and AIDS positive. This representation is important to reach older generations because they knew and mostly loved Queen and remember the death of Freddy Mercury. I would argue this became a turning point to the realization of HIV and how it does discriminate against the poor and the rich and the famous and working class. As well as opened the discussion of HIV and what is and how HIV and AIDS are in fact different. The movie that came out in the last decade also shows how older generations stigmatized the disease and encourages newer generations to combat this backwards, and harmful rhetoric around the virus. As well as encourage the increase in representation and why it so desperately matters.

13/05/2022

HIV in Television:

It is seen in Millennials and Generation Z that these generations have learned what HIV and AIDS stand for and surface level knowledge of the disease through popular media, such as the television we consume. Television plays an integral role in the knowledge and societal norms we integrate in to our everyday lives. HIV representation through public figures, celebrities, and television shows displays the epidemic and virus through the human eyes. This helps combat the stigmatizations that have spread through societal norms over generations. With the new knowledge and treatments, we have about HIV and AIDS there is no excuse for not knowing the truths and reality of HIV and AIDS. Think about your favorite show. What representation does it have? Does it show someone who lives with HIV in a normalized and healthy way? Does it show a homos*xual couple without stigmatizing or fetishizing the relationship? Does it represent gender in a non-heteronormative way? Most of our favorite shows does not show gender, s*xuality, and the HIV epidemic in a healthy, realistic way of life. Within the last decade we have seen a rise in representation of the virus, but nearly enough. In reality shows such as Q***r Eye and RuPaul Drag Race, we see more public figures speak out about their everyday lives living with HIV and what this means to them and their careers. This outreach is important not only for the LGBTQ community, but for everybody. The target audience for these reality shows are the younger generations and that demographic are the ones who can reshape the view we have on HIV and AIDS. We also see hit Tv shows such as Shameless and Pose depict HIV in a non-stigmatizing and realistic way. Specifically in Shameless, the character Caleb reveals his HIV positive status in a way that does depict having shame of having it and encourages his romantic interest to get tested. This normalizes the disease and takes away the stigma that it is something to be shameful about and debunk the thought that you can’t lead a healthy, normal life. In the article posted below is the writer talking about his experience with HIV and why his new show It’s a Sin is about the HIV epidemic and why it is important to depict HIV and AIDS in television.

13/05/2022

https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/press-play-with-madeleine-brand/shootings-natural-disasters-coronavirus-aids-hiv-tv-opera/its-a-sin-hbo-pose-queer-as-folk

“It’s A Sin” (HBO Max) follows young gay men in 1980s London just as the HIV/AIDS crisis comes to disrupt their lives

13/05/2022

“I have to put a stop to this onslaught, this barrage of attacks and of sub-truths and very harmful and mercurial stories that are about me, threatening the health of so many others that couldn’t be further from the truth”

13/05/2022

My Purpose

After speaking with some of my friends about HIV and AIDS I realized the only knowledge they have about the epidemic is what they hear and see through their peers and through media. I was talking to a group of five CIS gendered, straight men and the misconceptions they have about the virus was shocking. They mentioned how Magic Johnson was HIV positive and how they weren't sure what other public figures they knew that were also publicly known to have HIV or AIDs. Through a growing age of technology many learn about humantarian crisis, genocide, and political opinions through platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Public representation is so important in learning about the epidemic and combating against the misconceptions of the virus and those that have it. For as wide spread and worldwide HIV and AIDS is; why is not normalized by now? This growing stigma of the virus is generational and the information and misconceptions spread is generational. In this social media portfolio I will be using it as a blog to showcase my finding and share representation of HIV and AIDS through celebrities, public figures, and television. As well as address the need for more representation and why it matters. Let's explore the HIV and AIDS epidemic and let's normalize this conversation!

13/05/2022

My Mission:
Many gain their information about HIV and Aids through popular media. But what representation is out there?