Biased reporting about hiv in the media

[goatwriter]

 i was just browsing the BBC website to look for news about the recent Swiss study http://www.positivenation.co.uk/news_treatment/137/gus.php
 There was nothing there about it. I have also read nothing in the newspapers about it , nor seen anything on television. I'm surprised as I think it is huge news, with huge implications. Not only for those who hope to have a child, but in criminalization cases and in the fight against stigma.
 
 The only recent stories I have seen in the main press about hiv, this year,  are: a dentist who has been suspended for being hiv positive, and a man arrested for biting a police officer and  that chances for a vaccine fade.
 when I tell my negative friends about this Swiss study , the first reaction is that "You can't believe everything you read on the internet". I imagine they think it is part of some wacko conspiracy theory.
 It is only that my doctor has advised me and my partner, that we can go ahead and have a child naturally, that gives me any credibility.

 I hate conspiracy theories, but it makes me wonder why this study is not bigger news. For me , its the most important news about hiv since , I don't know when... the last 5 or 10 years?

 OK. That's it. 

[GSOgymrat]

This study was reported by major news agencies such as CNN earlier this year. Not everyone is convinced the Swiss study is valid.

[BT65]

Well, I've been with a few HIV- people, without condoms, and the other people have never tested positive.  Of course, a few of these people were before viral load testing came out. 

I suppose I feel about this the way I feel about disclosure etc.-it's a very personal decision.  There are some people who will believe it, and others who won't.

[Matty the Damned]

You know the Swiss have a fair bit to answer for.

Nazi gold, money laundering, yodelling, generalised smugness and now this study.

My understanding is that the scope of the study in question is limited and the relevance is a matter of some debate.

MtD

[hartiepie]

Helps to read the research in order to know what is going on before forming an opinion, but I have only found reports of the study which are one step away. Indeed there are very specific guidelines and results.

This particular study was discussed on these boards earlier this year.

As far as bias in media reporting, most certainly there is.

Goatwriter, what country are you referring to? US is sensational and what I have read from the UK is most distinctly aimed from the alarmist view.

[buca45]

....LOL well imagine that,  an alarmist slant to the MSM reporting in the USA?
I remember in the good 'ole days, to have HIV mentioned was to receive only negative news and views.
Then the whole abstinence only news, and now finally, it has gotten to the point where the only articles we hear are of fund raising events for African AIDS.
Now I am not saying it's not necessary to hear this info, I often wish more attention would be paid to research results/survival stories or medication funding information.
Having never lived abroad, are the news stations in foreign countries focusing on the HIV problems or positive aspects of the disease in their own countries ?

[poz1970]

not quite relevant.. but my first partner and I used to joke about the media's reporting of positive people... if a  positive person got run over by a steamroller, they'd report it as an 'aids related steamroller accident'

They don't seem quite that bad anymore, but it still sticks in my head :-D


J

[J.R.E.]

Hi,

This was from February regarding the Swiss study. There is also a video that you can watch ( or read the transcript) ;

http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/hiv_sex_condoms_2151_14105.shtml


For the video click here :

http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/hiv_condoms_virus_2151_14010.shtml


Ray

[J.R.E.]

By the way, I would not think of discarding my condoms, just because I am undetectable !!


Ray

[chm02]

Interesting article.
In their official statement, the specialists said:
“People with HIV who are not suffering from a sexually transmitted infection and who are on fully suppressive antiretroviral therapy do not transmit the virus through sexual contact.”

Now, forgive me if I am being hyper-literal, but aren't most people who have HIV "suffering from a sexually transmitted infection"?

It seems the man meant that those with HIV who are not suffering from another, concomitant sexually transmitted infection etc., etc.

Perhaps it's just me, but after reading that singularly ambiguous (i.e. WRONG) statement, I couldn't take the rest of the article completely seriously.

[hartiepie]

Take a quick look through the Q & A in the Am I Infected forum here at AIDSmeds and you will see plenty of "No Risk Here" answers by advocates for HIV/AIDS folks.

Everyone will use 'shortcuts' to make a point.

[LordBerners]

Interesting article.
In their official statement, the specialists said:
“People with HIV who are not suffering from a sexually transmitted infection and who are on fully suppressive antiretroviral therapy do not transmit the virus through sexual contact.”

Now, forgive me if I am being hyper-literal, but aren't most people who have HIV "suffering from a sexually transmitted infection"?

It seems the man meant that those with HIV who are not suffering from another, concomitant sexually transmitted infection etc., etc.

Perhaps it's just me, but after reading that singularly ambiguous (i.e. WRONG) statement, I couldn't take the rest of the article completely seriously.

The fellow's meaning was perfectly obvious to me.

[bear60]

"People with HIV who are not suffering from a sexually transmitted infection"
..........................
Is this whats causing all the fuss?  I think this means HIV positive people who are HEALTHY ( not suffering) ...etc

[LordBerners]

"People with HIV who are not suffering from a sexually transmitted infection"
..........................
Is this whats causing all the fuss?  I think this means HIV positive people who are HEALTHY ( not suffering) ...etc

No, it just means you don't have gonorrhea or something.

[chm02]

The fellow's meaning was perfectly obvious to me.

Perhaps, but you need to add the unspoken qualifier (i.e. other STD's) in order to arrive at that meaning.
The fact remains that what he said is not what (we believe) he meant.
Fine for casual conversation, sure, but scientific researchers making such an important statement are, I believe, held to a higher standard of clarity.
This is all aside from the question of whether or not his assertion is correct; my point was just about the sloppy use of language.
I wanted to chalk it up to a poor translation, but the very next paragraph made a show of careful translation, albeit on a different point.

[the-wisdom]

A couple of points. First, the Swiss paper was not based on "a  study". It was based on an analysis of a number of studies which tracked HIV transmission in sero-discordant heterosexual couples. The risk of HIV transmission is higher in anal than in vaginal sex, and stratospherically higher in injection with shared needles. We can't be sure that the very low risk of transmission from an infected person with undetectable viral load in vaginal sex also applies to anal sex or shared injection equipment.

Secondly, yes, the Swiss paper clearly meant "unless either of you is infected with a sexually transmitted infection other than HIV". Infection with other STIs increases the likelihood of acquiring HIV (it increases susceptability by creating openings in our mucosal barriers and draws susceptible T cells close to the point where the virus might enter the body). But other STIs can also increase HIV in semen and other genital fluids EVEN WHEN VIRAL LOAD IN THE BLOOD REMAINS UNDETECTABLE.

If you're worried about the quality of the translation, you can find the original French on a link on: http://www.wisdomofwhores.com/2008/02/05/to-inform-or-to-overprotect-the-swiss-have-chosen-well/

[hartiepie]

If you're worried about the quality of the translation, you can find the original French on a link on: http://www.wisdomofwhores.com/2008/02/05/to-inform-or-to-overprotect-the-swiss-have-chosen-well/

Thanks for the link!