Abstract / Description of output
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been hailed as a revolutionary intervention for HIV prevention. PrEP’s controversial status in the UK has generated significant media coverage. It is important to understand what role the media plays in framing PrEP policy issues. We undertook a qualitative analysis of UK newsprint articles between 2012-2016 to examine how PrEP was framed as a public health intervention up until a controversial policy decision not to provide PrEP in England. We identified how scientific evidence was deployed to shape two narratives: ir/responsible citizens focused on imagined PrEP users and their capacity to use PrEP effectively; and the public health imperative, which described the need for PrEP. Our analysis demonstrates the particular ways in which scientific evidence contributed to the certainty of PrEP as an effective intervention within UK newsprint. Scientific evidence also played a key role in framing PrEP as an intervention specifically for cis-gendered gay and bisexual men, playing into wider debates about who is a deserving patient and appropriate use of public resources. Practitioners in the UK and elsewhere should be aware of these constructions of the PrEP user to ensure equitable access to PrEP beyond gay and bisexual men.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-17 |
Journal | Culture, Health & Sexuality |
Volume | N/A |
Early online date | 7 Apr 2020 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 7 Apr 2020 |
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Nicola Boydell
- Deanery of Molecular, Genetic and Population Health Sciences - Lecturer in Social Science and Public Health
- Usher Institute
- Centre for Population Health Sciences
- Centre for Biomedicine, Self and Society
Person: Academic: Research Active