With 10 people becoming infected with the HIV virus each minute, executives from major news and entertainment organizations from around the world are set to gather Thursday at United Nations Headquarters in New York for a discussion on how media can contribute to the fight against AIDS.
Hosted by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the Global Media AIDS Initiative seeks to examine such issues as how the media can create long-lasting public education campaigns and build greater media participation.
According to the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 8,000 people die from HIV/AIDS each day while another 14,000 become newly infected. Last year alone, the disease killed more than 3 million people and an estimated 5 million became infected - brining to some 40 million the number currently living with the virus.
Among tomorrow's speakers will be UNAIDS Executive Director Dr. Peter Piot, co-Chair of the event, who will describe the challenges posed by the AIDS pandemic. Other speakers will include co-Chair Drew Altman, President of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, and Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft Corp. and Co-founder of The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
A press conference bringing together many of the media leaders to discuss their efforts against AIDS will be held at the end of the event.