What young people see and hear about sex in popular entertainment is often misleading, incomplete, or distorted. Casual or impetuous sex between unmarried people is depicted as acceptable and often as without risks or adverse consequences. From most mass-media entertainment, young people learn behavior that puts their health at risk.
Efforts are underway, however, to use the mass media to help young people adopt more healthful behavior. These range from comic books that tell young people how to avoid HIV/AIDS (404) to large-scale multimedia campaigns such as the Philippine Multi Media Campaign for Young People, which, through television, radio, music videos, and a telephone hotline linked to youth assistance agencies, encouraged young people to postpone sex (414,523).
Ask the Media/Materials Clearinghouse
The Media/Materials Clearinghouse (M/MC) at the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs welcomes requests for examples of communication materials for young people. The M/MC offers access to a continually growing collection of pamphlets, posters, videos, audiotapes, films, and novelty items produced worldwide to promote reproductive health and family planning. The 25,000-item collection contains over 1,700 materials produced specifically for young people, including over 300 videos, 1,100 pamphlets, and 280 posters from 75 countries.
Health communication specialists can use materials from the M/MC to develop new materials and in advocacy and training programs. The M/MC provides a single copy or reproduction of any item free of charge, to be used for educational purposes, to health care professionals working in developing countries.
In your request to the M/MC, please state the desired medium, intended audience, specific subject, and language (for example, "posters for teenagers about abstinence, in French"). M/MC staff will conduct a search of the collection and provide single copies of materials for review, information about ordering the materials, and any other relevant infor- mation. A bibliography also can be supplied on request.
Whats New, a periodic newsletter highlighting materials recently received in the M/MC, is distributed free to qualified requestors.
The M/MC also distributes The PCS Packet Series (published 1983-1994), a series of 17 packets containing actual sample materials along with materials development guidelines. Packets particularly relevant to work with young people include:
- No. 5—Reaching Young People
- No. 12—Photonovels and Comic Books for Family Planning
- No. 15—Songs for Family Planning
Send inquiries and requests to: Manager, Media/Materials Clearinghouse, Johns Hopkins Population Information Program, 111 Market Place, Suite 310, Baltimore, Maryland 21202-4012, USA; fax 410-659-6266; or e-mail mmc@jhuccp.org.
- Pervasive: The broadcast media reach people all over the world.
- Popular: People seek out entertainment and pay attention to it.
- Personal: Entertainment can depict personal situations and relationships meaningful
to the audience.
- Passionate: Entertainment can generate intense feelings, which enhance learning.
- Persuasive: When the audience identifies with stars or characters, they seek to
behave like these role models.
- Practical: Skilled professionals and the communication infrastructure are already
available.
- Profitable: The mass media are cost-effective, and good entertainment attracts
commercial support.
- Proven effective: Surveys show that messages in songs, dramas, and variety shows can influence knowledge, attitudes, and behavior (380, 381, 382).
