Power in the Blood

"For this volume, Elwood gathered together an impressive array of scholars to address the intersection of AIDS, politics, and communication....The book's thesis is clearly illustrated....This volume does an admirable job of making important points....I hope that this book marks the first step in increasing connections between public health and communications researchers."—Journal of Sex Research"This book is a must-have for anyone interested in, or doing research into, the psychosocial aspects of HIV/AIDS. It is thoughtfully conceived, well written and multi-disciplinary to an unprecedented degree."—Donna RochonEditor, Research Initiative/Treatment Action"This is a highly approachable book that should be read by anybody interested in the 'state-of-the-art' of sexual behavior and HIV prevention research. Community based organizations (CBOs) can benefit from the practical evaluation frameworks included in many of the chapters addressing HIV prevention efforts; behavioral researchers will benefit from the focus on the interactions between the contexts in which sexual behavior takes place and their outcomes; sex therapists will learn a lot about the didactics of sex and drugs in today's world; and 'at-risk' persons will be able to learn how the challenges of remaining safe relate to the larger contexts of their sexual and drug use networks and the communities in which they live. This comprehensive set of thought provoking papers lays down new paths for breaking through the long-standing barriers that inhibited sexual behavior research and program evaluation."—David G. Ostrow, MD, PhDHBHC AIM Project

• Contents: Introduction. Part I: The Political: Introductory Perspectives.W.N. Elwood, Burden of Sin: Transmitting Messages and Viruses in a Stigmatized Plague. K.A. Clark, Pink Water: The Archetype of Blood and the Pool of Infinite Contagion. M.J. Sobnosky, E. Hauser, Initiating or Avoiding Activism: Red Ribbons, Pink Triangles, and Public Argument About AIDS. C.B. McCoy, C. Miles, L.R. Metsch, The Medicalization of Discourse Within an AIDS Research Setting. Part II: The Civic: Campaigns and Policy.V.S. Nelson, The Reagan Administration's Response to AIDS: Conservative Argument and Conflict. K.M. German, J.L. Courtright, Politically Privileged Voices: Glaser and Fisher Address the 1992 Presidential Nominating Conventions. M.S. McKinney, B.G. Pepper, From Hope to Heartbreak: Bill Clinton and the Rhetoric of AIDS. R.A. Slagle, Scapegoating and Political Discourse: Representative Robert Dornan's Legislation of Morality Through HIV/AIDS. Part III: The Intrapersonal: Individuals and Behavior.S.J. Stevens, J.G. Bogart, Reducing HIV Risk Behaviors of Drug-Involved Women: Social, Economic, Medical, and Legal Constraints. W.N. Elwood, M.L. Williams, The Politics of Silence: Communicative Rules and HIV Prevention Issues in Gay Male Bathhouses. A. Estrada, G.A. Quintero, Redefining Categories of Risk and Identity: The Appropriation of AIDS Prevention Information and Constructions of Risk. K.A. Cameron, K. Witte, S. Nzyuko, Perceptions of Condoms and Barriers to Condom Use Along the Trans-Africa Highway in Kenya. Part IV: The Interpersonal: Relations Among Individuals.D.M. Harney, Lesbians on the Frontline: Battling AIDS, Gays, and the Myth of Community. M.R. Weeks, M. Grier, K. Radda, D. McKinley, AIDS and Social Relations of Power: Urban African-American Women's Discourse on the Contexts of Risk and Prevention. G.A. Yep, M. Pietri, In Their Own Words: Communication and the Politics of HIV Education for Transgenders and Transsexuals in Los Angeles. Y. Kellar-Guenther, The Power of Romance: Changing the Focus of AIDS Education Messages. L. Bennett, M. Travers, Stigma, Secrecy, and Isolation: The Impact of HIV/AIDS on Women in an Australian Study. P.J. Svenkerud, N. Rao, E.M. Rogers, Mass Media Effects Through Interpersonal Communication: The Role of "Twende na Wakati" on the Adoption of HIV/AIDS Prevention in Tanzania. Part V: The Public: Perspectives on Mass-Mediated Communication. T.N. Walters, L.M. Walters, S.H. Priest, Life on the Edge of the Precipice: Information Subsidy and the Rise of AIDS as a Public Issue, 1983-1989. B. Haller, AIDS as a Legally Defined Disability: Implications From News Media Coverage. K.B. Wright, AIDS, the Status Quo, and the Elite Media: An Analysis of the Guest Lists of "The MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour" and "Nightline." T.N. Walters, L.M. Walters, S.H. Priest, What We Say and How We Say It: The Influence of Psychosocial Characteristics and Message Content of HIV/AIDS Public Service Announcements. Part VI: The Programmatic: Relations Between People and Institutions. P.A. Gaist, AIDS Information and the National Institutes of Health. W.N. Elwood, Difference and Identification: Reconsidering the Indigenous Outreach Worker Model. L.K. Fuller, Media Manipulations and the AIDS/Breastfeeding Issue. M.C. Donovan, A Tough Sell: The Political Logic of Federal Needle-Exchange Policy. K. Greene, B. Cassidy, Ethical Choices Regarding Noncompliance: Prescribing Protease Inhibitors for HIV-Infected Female Adolescents. T.M. Steinfatt, J. Mielke, Communicating Danger: The Politics of AIDS in the Mekong Region. Part VII: The Synthesis: Conclusions and Projections. E.M. Rogers, C.L. Shefner-Rogers, Diffusion of Innovations and HIV/AIDS Prevention Research. W.N. Elwood, Victories to Win: Communicating HIV/AIDS Prevention and Tolerance.