
Fast on the heels of the brilliant landmine PSA come these Russian HIV/AIDS awareness PSAs, part of the Russian Media Partnership to Combat HIV/AIDS and the StopSPID campaign, which explain:
Russia has emerged as a new epicenter in the global HIV/AIDS pandemic, registering one of the worlds highest rates of new infections. At present, there are over 300,000 registered cases of HIV infection in Russia, although independent Russian and international experts estimate that between 700,000 and 1.5 million Russians may be living with HIV, representing between 1 and 2 percent of its adult population.
The PSAs themselves are insanely well-done: Half City asks the viewer to imagine what life will be like with friends and coworkers gone; in Kutuzovskiy, a speeding motorcade comes to a stop in a traffic jam, with the caption "every one is equal in the face of AIDS"; while inOld City, very old people hackeysack, model, ride motorcycles and DJ, while text reads "Imagine a world without young people. 4 out of 5 Russians living with HIV today are under 30." (all are in Russian, in case that's not obvious, but with English subtitles).
(thanks to ally Robbyn K. for showing these to me in NYC!)
A very minor correction: the ad actually says, "Imagine Russia without young people".
The Russian PSA's are brilliant.
I still don't understand why many funders and the public in general reluctant to embrace entertainment education or social marketing.
Our global media culture is huge, but we ignore its potential to do good.