We’re A Mess

Posted Aug 17, 2006 by Julie Pace

Updated Aug 17, 2006 at 12:52 PM

The media center here is starting to look a little bit like the Tampa Tribune newsroom - big piles of notebooks, newspapers, empty food wrappers and coffee cups. It’s understandable in a newsroom. We sit at those desks every day, some of us for years. But here? We’re only here for a week! I’m just going to draw the conclusion that reporters are messy people.

Tomorrow is the last day of the conference, and being in the media center is actually one of the things I’ll miss most. It’s a huge amalgamation of people from all over the world, speaking dozens of languages, all trying to figure out the same things. How do you cover the largest conference in the world focusing on the largest health crisis? How do you write on deadline while the NGOs keep dropping fliers and statements on your laptop? How do you get from one end of the convention center to the other in under 5 minutes while wearing 3 inch heals?

OK, maybe that’s just my problem.

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Manto

Posted Aug 17, 2006 by Julie Pace

Updated Aug 17, 2006 at 12:37 PM

If you know much about the HIV/AIDS epidemic, you know the name Manto. Actually, her full name is Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, and she’s South Africa’s controversial minister of health. Manto is known for making some pretty outrageous statements about the virus, including questioning whether HIV really causes AIDS, and recommending that people who are infected focus more on using natural remedies like garlic and beet root than proven HIV medication.

Sure, you could discount her as just another person making some crazy statements. But remember, this is a woman who oversees the health department of a country with 5.5 million HIV-positive people.

Manto is here in Toronto, but she’s been keeping an extremely low profile. She gets escorted in and out of session. Riot police stand guard when she is in the room. She avoids the press at all cost.

This morning, the protesters went after her. In the middle of the morning’s largest session, about 20 people lined the stage, silently holding signs that said “Fire Manto Now.” Manto sat just yards from them. Even when the session moderator, CNN’s Sanjay Gupta, asked is anyone from the health minister’s office wanted to respond to the protesters, she said no, instead letting a low level program coordinator face criticism.

Check out this article for more on Manto’s time in Toronto.

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It’s A Small World

Posted Aug 17, 2006 by Julie Pace

Updated Aug 17, 2006 at 08:26 AM

I went to a panel discussion last night with a group of people who work in African media. Having worked as a reporter there, I know there are a lot of challenges - low quality journalism schools lead to poor training of journalists, HIV aflicts people working in the newsroom, and there are psychological impacts of covering stories like HIV/AIDS and regional conflicts.

Then the journalists started talking about things like lack of money, lack of resources, and the struggles to get their editors to cover stories they think are important. Where have I heard those things before? In the Tampa Tribune newsroom, and from almost every other American journalist I know! It was ironic, but a little refreshing to know that even though we are on different continents, and working in vastly different conditions, journalists share a common bond - we like to complain.

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USF At The AIDS Conference

Posted Aug 16, 2006 by Julie Pace

Updated Aug 16, 2006 at 05:13 PM

In addition to the hundreds of sessions delegates have to choose from this week, there are also hundreds of abstracts being presented. Almost 13,000 abstracts were submitted; two doctors from University of South Florida were among the 4,000 candidates chosen to present their research findings.

Dr. Frank Fernandez and Dr. Doug Shytle studied the possible psychiatric impact of antiretroviral HIV medication, specifically related to Alzheimer’s disease. Sound complicated? Well, it is, but it is also extremely important research. The medication available today allows many people to live long, relatively healthy lives. However, no one knows the long-term impact of these drugs. It’s no ones fault, really. Since AIDS has only been around for 25 years, this is the first generation that will deal with these type of questions.

While Fernandez and Shytle say they have a long way to go before they can make any conclusive links between the drugs and Alzheimers, their preliminary results are interesting. Their study shows that antiretrovirals increase the generation of a protein found in Alzheimer patients. This shows that the drugs may play a role in raising this protein level among people with HIV.

Like I said, it’s complicated, and the doctors say they have a long way to go, but it’s great to know that there are people doing this type of research right in the Tampa area.

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Now That’s A Better Protest

Posted Aug 16, 2006 by Julie Pace

Updated Aug 16, 2006 at 04:35 PM

If there’s a world leader less popular at this conference than Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, it’s George Bush.

First, a word of praise for Mr. Bush. His $15 million PEPFAR program is giving more money to AIDS programs in third world countries than ever before. Despite some early concerns, the money does seem to be reaching its targets. But the problem, in the eyes of many in the AIDS community, are who those targets are. One-third of the PEPFAR money must go to abstinence programs, which studies have long shown do not work as well as programs that promote condoms.

Instead of just Bush-bashing, critics, and protesters, are focusing on getting world leaders like Bush to do something that seems easy - base their funding on the evidence. Today, the focus was on getting that message to Anthony Fauci from the National Institutes of Health. As Fauci got on stage in front of 6,000 people this morning, a group of protesters followed, holding signs and chanting, “Tony, tell George the evidence can’t be ignored.”

Fauci’s response? He applauded the protesters.

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