Top 10 New Media Lessons 2009 & Open Government Initiative

By Miguel Gomez

As 2010 approaches and I look back at 2009, I want to first share some of my new media lessons learned from AIDS.gov.

The most important thing that I learned this year is that we still have so much more to learn! The good news is that as the AIDS community learns and uses more new media tools we are often extending the reach of our HIV/AIDS programs.

At AIDS.gov, we've learned new media is about:

New Media Use at the New York State Department of Health's AIDS Institute

By Miguel Gomez

At the CDC's HIV Prevention Conference last August, I talked with our colleague, Humberto Cruz, about new media and HIV. Humberto is the Director of the AIDS Institute at the New York State Department of Health . I was excited to hear about the AIDS Institute's adoption of new media — they've developed a widget for emergency room providers of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and their Disease Information Specialists are taking a lead for online partner notification for STIs. They have also convened a Social Media Workgroup and are developing a comprehensive new media strategy.

New Media Institutes, Usability Testing, A Photo Booth, and More: Preview of AIDS.gov's Activities at the U.S. Conference on AIDS

By Jennie Anderson

What do new media institutes, usability, and a BIG RED photo booth have in common?

They are some of activities we're planning for later this month at the U.S. Conference on AIDS (USCA) . This annual conference, hosted by the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC) , will take place October 29-31st in San Francisco and will bring together public health experts, people living with HIV, government employees, activists, and community leaders from across the country (and a few from around the world!). We're so grateful to the organizers of USCA — they've put together a packed agenda for the conference, and we look forward to taking part.

2009 National Technology Conference: Highlights for the HIV Community

By Michelle Samplin-Salgado

Last week, Jennie Anderson and I attended the Nonprofit Technology Network's (NTEN) 2009 National Technology Conference (NTC) . Because many AIDS service organizations are non-profits, the conference provides us with an opportunity to gain invaluable insight into how non-profit organizations across the country and around the world are using new media to inspire, connect and collaborate with their audiences. It was inspiring for me to learn from and share experiences with people who really care about what they are doing and believe in the causes they represent. And there is so much we, in the HIV community, can learn from people working to promote their own causes. Here are a few highlights:

Introduction to Mashups: 1 + 1 = Mashups?

AIDSportal “HIV Jobs” Mashup

Mashups -- what are they? Are they being used by the HIV/AIDS community? To learn more, we spoke with Rob Worthington from AIDSportal and AIDS.gov advisor, David Galiel .

What is a mashup?

Rob told us, “A mashup is a way of combining data, content, or a function from different websites in a new or innovative way. This can create extra value or utility.”