| January 2010 - News |
| January 2010 |
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Syrian government launches AIDS booklet for journalists Last month the Syrian government launched the first handbook on AIDS for journalists, which aims to give them a clearer insight into the illness and ways of covering it in the media. The move shows the government is pursuing a new strategy when it comes to tackling the sensitive issue. The booklet was co-issued by the Ministry of Information’s Developing Media Department and the Ministry of Health’s National AIDS Committee and sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund. According to official figures, a total of 557 people had been diagnosed with AIDS by the end of 2008. Of those, 304 were Syrian and 253 were foreign. “AIDS has not been one of the priorities in Syria but there have been some changes; we’ve had refugees and there are more foreigners coming in,” Director of the Ministry of Information’s Developing Media Department Mazen Nafa’a said in an interview with Syria Today. “One of the reasons we decided to publish this booklet is because some reporters were releasing wrong information on the subject. The idea is to stop journalists from publishing dangerous or misleading information about AIDS.” Nafa’a said the booklet is meant to teach people working in media how to deal with the issue, which is still very sensitive in Syria, in a scientific way. “Journalists are more important than the Ministry of Health or even doctors when it comes to getting accurate and comprehensive information across to the general public,” Nafa’a said. “If journalists have the wrong information about AIDS, they will communicate that to their readers, viewers and listeners.” |