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Towards Agenda Setting

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Towards Agenda Setting

Does the policy agenda-setting process actually lead to changes in behaviour, and to solution of the original social problem, or, with time, does the problem just go away? This question was raised by James W. Dearing, Everett M. Rogers in their book, ‘Model of the Agenda Setting Theory’(Dearing & Rogers 1996:82). The four phases: agenda setting, formulation, implementation and evaluation. In practice only a handful actually do gain their consideration. Agenda setting theory is rooted in communications studies and focuses on how mass media influences the setting of political agenda as articulated by McCombs and Shaw (1972), who found a high correlation between media agenda and the public agenda. Experience has shown that the interaction of policy interest and policy uncertainty correlates with the effectiveness of salience transfer. Salience transfer refers to the capacity of the media and/or other actors to influence the relative importance individuals attach to policy issues. Kingdon(1984 3-4) distinguishes between the government agenda and the decision agenda. The latter implies issues on the governmental agenda which are 'up for an active decision'. During the agenda setting process, governments often set up commissions to conduct investigations following which reports are published in gazettes and publicized in news conferences. But Downs (1972) argues that such a process often fails to influence actual behavior change. Policy recommendations in the area of public health should be based on epidemiological evidence, otherwise, as in some African cases, power relations tend to constrain the fair distribution of resources in accordance with REAL priorities. A case in point is Reichenbach’s experience in Ghana (2002), which demonstrates that despite epidemiological evidence that cervical cancer presented a higher burden than breast cancer in the country, the latter received greater political priority-why? Because of local politics, the influence of international women groups from the US and Canada, and the fact that the prevalence of breast rather than cervical cancer was higher among wealthier women in Ghana. The behaviour change impacts of agenda-setting in the area of HIV/AIDS have been demonstrated following disclosures by key personalities and celebrities. For example, in the Orange County of California, the media coverage of celebrities with AIDS: Rock Hudson(1985); Paul Gann in 1987; Magic Johnson(1991) and tennis star Arthur Ashe in 1992, always led to an increase in the number of anonymous HIV blood tests (Gellert, Weismuller, Higgins & Maxwell 1992). Similar notions are also found in the theoretical and methodological perspectives of Paulo Freire (1970, 1973) in what he refers to as 'naming the world’. A good example is the case of top Ugandan musician Philly Lutaaya, who in 1989 announced that he was HIV-positive. Lutaaya’s crusade for openness and his song, 'Alone and Frightened' was a great contribution to efforts to reduce the stigma attached to the disease. In order to relentlessly challenge the culture of silence that continues to hamper desirable social change, communication must play a stronger role to enhance ‘the naming of the world’.

With best regards, Sarah

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A la réunion de Génève, il

   A la réunion de Génève, il est urgent d'aborder la question fondamentale de la Stigmatisation et de la Discrimination Associées au VIH et SIDA.et  réfléchissant sur le role de l'éducation et de la Communication dans la lutte contre la Stigmatisation et la Discrimination associées au VIH/SIDA. Réfléchir fondamental sur l'approche culturelle dans les actions de lutte contre la Stigmatisatisation et la Discrimination associées au VIH et SIDA.

Je vous faits partager mon analyse scientifique sur la Stigmatisatisation et la Discrimination associées au VIH et Sida en Afrique : des pratiques qui perdurent. Le texte est fondamentalement en français.

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Impact: Social and Behavioural Change
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