AIDS.gov Blog: Introduction

Content From: AIDS.govPublished: January 07, 20082 min read

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The HIV.gov Web site was launched World AIDS Day, December 1, 2006. Several Federal agencies, including HHS, created HIV.gov to help health departments, AIDS service organizations, and others easily find information on Federal domestic HIV/AIDS programs, policies, and resources.

In the last few months, HIV.gov has started to use new media tools to improve the Web site. We define “new media” as interactive forms of communication that use the Internet, including podcasts, RSS feeds, social networks, text messaging, blogs, etc.

Our use of these tools has encouraged HIV.gov visitors to ask us for guidance on new media. We have received questions such as, “How do you define new media?”, and “How can we produce a podcast or use cell phones to disseminate HIV information?” This blog is a response to these requests for information.

This blog will focus on why and how HIV.gov is using these new media tools, how they work, and where to find easy-to-understand new media resources. We encourage you to use these tools in your own work on HIV/AIDS.

Each Tuesday we will post information from interviews with leading experts on new media and with HIV/AIDS professionals who are using new media. Each posting will include a summary of an interview and reflect on ways HIV.gov and others can implement what we have learned. We encourage you to submit your comments and add to the discussion. (See the Comment Policy)

Our next posting will be about podcasts. For more information on the development of posts, visit About This Blog.

A note on the format: we developed this blog using HHS Secretary Leavitt’s blog as a model. It’s a solid example of how a Federal blog can transfer information to spark dialogue. We encourage you to visit his blog.

After three months of posting and receiving your comments, we will evaluate whether or not the blog is meeting the needs of HIV.gov’s readers, and then decide if and how the journey will continue.

We look forward to learning with you and to finding new and creative ways to contribute to the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Stay tuned for next week’s discussion of podcasts!