Unicef uses blog for AIDS campaign
AIDS: UNICEF is calling on the community to blog about AIDS. The campaign is generating a lot of interest.
Aids Unicef calls on the community to blog against Aids. The campaign has met with a great response.
"Every blog post counts. Even if we end up being just a small voice in the din of pharmaceutical, papal and political interests," writes one blogger, calling on the blogosphere to support the Unicef campaign "You and me against AIDS". At the beginning of this year, Unicef, the United Nations Children's Fund, launched the "You and me against AIDS" campaign. In addition to the classic poster campaign, the campaign's creators also rely on "word of mouth". And in its most modern form: weblogs.
New territory blogosphereWith the "Blogging against AIDS" campaign, Unicef is calling on the blogosphere to blog against AIDS. Bloggers should use their own blog articles to draw attention to the concerns of Unicef and the danger of AIDS. According to Carsten Schmidt, project manager at Unicef, the strength of the weblog as a fast and networked news medium will be optimally utilized.
Since April, the initiators of the campaign have been relying on the multiplier effect of the blogosphere to spread the Unicef messages virally. The figures impressively illustrate that blogs can be used successfully for advertising campaigns. Since the launch of the campaign, around 90 bloggers have registered their weblog on the Unicef website. To date, several hundred bloggers are likely to have addressed Unicef topics in their weblogs and linked to the Unicef site.
Originally, the "You and me against AIDS" campaign was launched without the "Blogging against AIDS" campaign. It was only when the collection of signatures and statements on the Unicef website proved to be a success that the campaign initiators engaged experts from the blogosphere, who then developed a blog concept for Unicef. "After the success of the statement campaign, blogging against AIDS was the logical next step," says Carsten Schmidt.
Unicef broke new ground with the "Blogging against Aids" campaign. Carsten Schmidt: "We didn't know how the mechanisms of a loosely networked virtual community work. Now we know how blogs can be used to activate people and campaign for an important issue."
Together with partners such as Unaids, Unicef has launched the "You and me against AIDS" campaign. One of the reasons for the campaign is the development in Asia, where a second epicenter of the deadly disease is developing alongside Africa. The aid organization wants to draw attention to the many children and young people who are among the "forgotten victims" of Aids. According to Unicef, one child dies every minute as a result of the immune deficiency. With the "You and me against AIDS" campaign, Unicef wants to make the extent of the catastrophe for children and young people visible and mobilize more help for affected children.
Huge supportTo date, more than 480,000 people have supported the Unicef campaign with their signatures. In addition, several thousand users have expressed their support with an individual statement on the Unicef website. Surprisingly many of them cite personal concern as the reason for their commitment. For example, 12-year-old Kevin: "I am fighting against AIDS with Unicef because it is important to protect yourself against AIDS and to learn more about how you can protect yourself."
Unicef wants pharmaceutical companies to reduce the price of AIDS drugs and develop suitable medicines for HIV-infected children. More than 660,000 children in developing countries need anti-viral drugs, but so far only 20,000 are receiving them. Unicef is calling on governments in industrialized and developing countries to provide more information and access to education for all children. And: Unicef is calling on governments to provide more money to support children affected by AIDS. So far, only a fraction of development aid has gone to health services and the care of AIDS orphans.
Christian Lüscher
"Every blog post counts. Even if we end up being just a small voice in the din of pharmaceutical, papal and political interests," writes one blogger, calling on the blogosphere to support the Unicef campaign "You and me against AIDS". At the beginning of this year, Unicef, the United Nations Children's Fund, launched the "You and me against AIDS" campaign. In addition to the classic poster campaign, the campaign's creators also rely on "word of mouth". And in its most modern form: weblogs.
New territory blogosphereWith the "Blogging against AIDS" campaign, Unicef is calling on the blogosphere to blog against AIDS. Bloggers should use their own blog articles to draw attention to the concerns of Unicef and the danger of AIDS. According to Carsten Schmidt, project manager at Unicef, the strength of the weblog as a fast and networked news medium will be optimally utilized.
Since April, the initiators of the campaign have been relying on the multiplier effect of the blogosphere to spread the Unicef messages virally. The figures impressively illustrate that blogs can be used successfully for advertising campaigns. Since the launch of the campaign, around 90 bloggers have registered their weblog on the Unicef website. To date, several hundred bloggers are likely to have addressed Unicef topics in their weblogs and linked to the Unicef site.
Originally, the "You and me against AIDS" campaign was launched without the "Blogging against AIDS" campaign. It was only when the collection of signatures and statements on the Unicef website proved to be a success that the campaign initiators engaged experts from the blogosphere, who then developed a blog concept for Unicef. "After the success of the statement campaign, blogging against AIDS was the logical next step," says Carsten Schmidt.
Unicef broke new ground with the "Blogging against Aids" campaign. Carsten Schmidt: "We didn't know how the mechanisms of a loosely networked virtual community work. Now we know how blogs can be used to activate people and campaign for an important issue."
Together with partners such as Unaids, Unicef has launched the "You and me against AIDS" campaign. One of the reasons for the campaign is the development in Asia, where a second epicenter of the deadly disease is developing alongside Africa. The aid organization wants to draw attention to the many children and young people who are among the "forgotten victims" of Aids. According to Unicef, one child dies every minute as a result of the immune deficiency. With the "You and me against AIDS" campaign, Unicef wants to make the extent of the catastrophe for children and young people visible and mobilize more help for affected children.
Huge supportTo date, more than 480,000 people have supported the Unicef campaign with their signatures. In addition, several thousand users have expressed their support with an individual statement on the Unicef website. Surprisingly many of them cite personal concern as the reason for their commitment. For example, 12-year-old Kevin: "I am fighting against AIDS with Unicef because it is important to protect yourself against AIDS and to learn more about how you can protect yourself."
Unicef wants pharmaceutical companies to reduce the price of AIDS drugs and develop suitable medicines for HIV-infected children. More than 660,000 children in developing countries need anti-viral drugs, but so far only 20,000 are receiving them. Unicef is calling on governments in industrialized and developing countries to provide more information and access to education for all children. And: Unicef is calling on governments to provide more money to support children affected by AIDS. So far, only a fraction of development aid has gone to health services and the care of AIDS orphans.
Christian Lüscher
