Soap operas for social change: the intruder in photos

PCI-Media Impact (Media Impact) and Asociacion Comunicares have spent the last three years collaborating to improve the lives of Guatemalan youth. With training and mentoring from Media Impact, the Asociacion Comunicares team and partners have produced more than 35 episodes of a radio drama titled "El Intruso/The Intruder" to address the growing HIV and AIDS epidemic in the Central American nation.

In addition to the radio drama, trained youth volunteers host a weekly hour-long radio program to promote dialogue about the issues of sexual health and HIV and AIDS, and to address and dispell associated myths and stigmas. Listeners are invited to further engaged in these important conversations during community fairs hosted by peer educators in both Spanish and Mam, a local indigenous language.

The results have been staggering, with significant improvements in knowledge, attitudes and practices in listeners. In some cases more than 70% of those surveyed attribute these changes to the radio drama.