By Ken Liebeskind
NEW YORK --Two Hollywood stars, six NBA players and a hip hop sound track combine to communicate a strong message about AIDS testing in a PSA produced by HBO in association with the NBA, the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDs and the Kaiser Family Foundation. The PSA runs at www.testing411.org and YouTube and is playing on air at NBA TV, BET and MTV.
The :60 “AIDS Testing PSA” is narrated by Jamie Foxx with Queen Latifah and the NBA stars providing remarks about how important it is to get tested for AIDS. The NBA stars include Richard Jefferson, Lamar Odom, Luke Walton, Samuel Dalembert, Kyle Korver and Marcus Williams.
Testing a microphone provided the theme for the spot. “Testing, testing 1-2, we took it across into AIDS testing,” said Chris Spencer, HBO’s senior vice president/general manager of creative services, who directed the spot.
The spot begins with a shot of a microphone and Jamie Foxx and Queen Latifah saying, “Testing, testing.” Then it moves to the basketball courts, with the NBA stars in action, offering comments on AIDS testing as they take it to the hoop.
The spot was shot in locations around the country to accommodate the cast, from New Jersey, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, where the NBA stars play, to Shreveport, LA, where Queen Latifah was located.
The spot was shot with a wide frame Super 16 mm camera, Spencer said.
“We had really good people and cool shots, but we needed a unifying force to pull it together,” he said. The answer — a hip hop track from Rhythm Cafe/Chicago, the music production company, that was produced by Jim Olen, composed by Stevie Butler, starring hip hop legend Doug E. Fresh as the lead vocalist. The lyrics include, “Get on the ball, get tested,” which unifies the basketball theme with the AIDS message. “We’re doing all we can to get the word out, we wanted something energetic and non-stop to bring home the fact that there’s no fear and no shame in getting tested,” Olen said. “When I heard the track, I knew it would be good,” Spencer said.
The spot began playing on June 13 and was timed to lead up to National HIV Testing Day, June 27. The website provides information on testing options and a database on HIV testing centers.
TikTok and the U.S. Face Off In Court Over Law That Could Lead To A Ban Of The Popular Platform
TikTok faced off with the U.S. government in federal court on Monday, arguing a law that could ban the platform in a few short months was unconstitutional while the Justice Department said the measure is critical to eliminate a national security risk posed by the popular social media company.
Attorneys for the two sides - and content creators - appeared before a panel of three judges at a federal appeals court in Washington, where TikTok and its China-based parent company, ByteDance, are challenging the law that is forcing them to break ties by mid-January or lose one of their biggest markets in the world.
Andrew Pincus, a veteran attorney representing the two companies, argued in court that the law unfairly targets the company and runs afoul of the First Amendment because TikTok Inc. - the U.S. arm of TikTok - is an American entity. Another attorney representing creators who are also challenging the law also argued it violates the rights of U.S. speakers and is akin to prohibiting Americans from publishing on foreign-owned media outlets, such as Politico, Al Jazeera or Spotify.
"The law before this court is unprecedented and its effect would be staggering," Pincus said, adding the act would impose speech limitations based on future risks.
The law, signed by President Joe Biden in April, was the culmination of a years-long saga in Washington over the short-form video-sharing app, which the government sees as a national security threat due to its connections to China.
The U.S. has said it's concerned about TikTok collecting vast swaths of user data, including sensitive information on viewing habits, that could fall into the hands of the Chinese government through coercion. The U.S. also says the proprietary algorithm that fuels... Read More