CIVIC-MEDIA AIDS AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS: MESSAGE A STRATEGIES FOR EFFECT

ATTENTION: The Singapore Copyright Act applies to the use of this document. Nanyang Technological University Library A fundamental obstacle;n AIDS prevention is captured in Metts & Fitzpatrick's (1992) statement that "The immediate consequences of sexual activity are reinforcing, whereas the negative consequences of unprotected sex are uncertain and removed in time from the sexual act " (p. 1). Of all health promotion efforts, it is precisely the character of and misunderstanding about AIDS and HIV infection that make education such a difficult task. Indeed, it is this cognitive distance from risk must be bridged for messages for messages to be effective. My goal is to suggest characteristics of effective mass-media campaigns within the civic media. In order to provide some parameters for the analysis, I have focused on posters produced for 1991-1993 campaigns by the Singapore Ministry of Health's Training and Health Education Department and Action for AIDS, a private voluntary organization (PVO). My use of these campaign examples is to provide specific illustrations of the characteristics I'm about to discuss. HTV and ADDS in Singapore The first case of AIDS was reported inrSmgapoiE in 1985. HTV infection and AID