Never Just HIV

It’s Never Just HIV was a PSA and print-driven campaign aimed at increasing condom use among young MSM in New York City. The campaign emphasized the co-morbid medical conditions for which individuals diagnosed with HIV are at increased risk, including anal cancer, osteoporosis and dementia. It’s Never Just HIV was developed as a response to the disproportionate number of new infections among MSM in New York City. Epidemiological data from 2009 confirmed that young MSM were the only demographic group for whom there had been a sustained increase in new HIV diagnoses in New York City. The majority of PSAs ran for thirty seconds on networks identified as popular among gay men, including Logo, Bravo, the Travel Channel, and the Style Network. Additional spots ran on NBC, the Discovery channel, the Food Network and Comedy Central. Almost 2,000 spots ran for the duration of the campaign period. An online version of the PSA launched on YouTube as a companion to the television spots. A print phase of the campaign was launched in February 2011. Campaign posters were featured in English and Spanish and were placed in twenty percent of all subway cars (approximately 1,000 posters). Overall, the campaign ran for six months, through May 2011. Survey data indicated widespread exposure to the campaign and also indicated self-reported behavior change. Surveys conducted after the campaign release suggested that approximately half of the priority population were exposed to It's Never Just HIV. In summary, It’s Never Just HIV was a multi-component campaign that generated broad exposure among the key priority population. Strong reactions to the campaign helped to propel both exposure and longevity.