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MOAT for improved HIV/Aids reporting - Mengi
2007-02-28 10:10:04
By Pastory Nguvu
The Chairman of the Media Owners Association of Tanzania (MOAT), Reginald Mengi, has said that his organisation is ready to cooperate with other non-governmental associations to improve HIV/Aids reporting in Tanzania.
Mengi said this in Dar es Salaam yesterday during a meeting on Media and HIV/Aids rapid assessment, which was organised by Health Policy Initiative (HPI).
`The media has worked hard in sensitizing the people regarding HIV/Aids. However, it must go into details when reporting HIV issues. If we talk of faithfulness, there is a need to go beyond that, rather than simply reporting what is said in workshops and seminars,` he said.
He said there were a lot of stories which are not well covered by journalists, a factor that limited important information, which was supposed to reach the masses.
The MOAT Chairman said some few reporters had been going into details when reporting about HIV.
`I have heard that in some cases, patients who use ARVs die faster than those who do not use them. These kind of stories need to be well-studied so that they can educate the people on the significance of following instructions, which will help those using ARVs to live longer,` he said.
In her opening remarks, the chairperson of the Tanzania aids Parliamentarian Coalition, Lediana Mng’ongo, said the media had tirelessly worked towards building an informed and knowledgeable society.
`The fact that 95 per cent of the adult population is aware of HIV/Aids substantiates the significant contribution that journalists have made and are continuing to make,` she said
She said the mass media had remained a powerful tool for delivering messages, whether in the form of entertainment or features or hard news.
`A number of studies had singled out the mass media as the first and most popular source of information,` Mng`ongo said.
`I would like to stress that change in our attitudes, behavior and sexual practices is inevitable. Change must happen and must begin with us if we are to win this war against HIV/Aids,` she said.
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