New AHF ‘Full Body’ Tinder/Grindr STD Billboards

On the heels of CDC’s report today of an alarming increase in
sexually transmitted diseases in the US in 2014—with the majority
affecting 15 to 24-year olds—AHF reveals plans for a new naked ‘full
body’ Tinder and Grindr STD billboard ad focusing on potential STD risk
users of such hook up apps face.

AHF’s new billboard campaign, which has been in the works for weeks,
follows a similar previous Tinder/Grinder silhouette billboard campaign
that AHF launched in September. That campaign generated worldwide
notice—and threatened legal action from Tinder as well as an advertising
blacklist by Grindr.

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–On the heels of a newly released U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report documenting an
alarming increase in sexually transmitted diseases in the US in
2014—with the majority affecting 15 to 24-year olds—AIDS
Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is revealing plans today to roll out a
new ‘full
body’ Tinder and Grindr STD billboard campaign focusing on the
potential STD risk users of such hook up applications face. According to
an article
in USA Today, “Sexually transmitted diseases like chlamydia,
gonorrhea and syphilis increased dramatically in 2014, according to the
CDC.”

AHF’s new Tinder/Grindr STD billboard campaign, which has been in the
works for weeks, follows a similar
Tinder/Grindr STD billboard put up by AHF in September in Greater
Los Angeles and South Florida. Those billboards drew worldwide notice
and widespread social media attention—as well as threatened legal action
from Tinder.
Those billboards also resulted in AHF being blacklisted from advertising
on Grindr
for a brief period. The new billboard campaign will expand to additional
cities and locations beyond California and Florida.

AHF’s latest Tinder/Grindr STD billboards feature naked ‘full body’
silhouettes of couples embracing horizontally set against a brightly
colored graffiti-style background. The September billboards featured
cameo-like black silhouettes of four upright heads positioned as two
couples facing each other. In both the old and new artwork, each couple
(one a man
and a woman; the other, two
men) one member of the couple has the name of one of the popular
hook up apps, such as Tinder, superimposed on it; the facing body (or
head) has the name of a sexually transmitted disease, such as Chlamydia,
across it. The billboards also include the URL ‘FreeSTDCheck.org,’ where
people can get information and locations offering free HIV and STD
testing.

“While AHF’s Tinder/Grindr STD billboards do not expressly equate these
social apps with STDs, they do encourage users of the apps to think
about whether their own use of them has put them at risk,” said Michael
Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “There are
legitimate concerns, and a critical ongoing need for greater attention
to STD prevention and transmission—as the alarming new STD statistics
from the CDC show.”

A lengthy September 2015 Vanity Fair article
entitled “Tinder and the Dawn of the ‘Dating Apocalypse” explored
the role mobile dating apps are increasingly playing in encouraging
casual sex among young adults. AHF’s billboard campaigns featuring
Tinder and Grindr attempt to remind users of the inherent STD risks of
both heterosexual and homosexual casual sexual encounters.

“Both Tinder and Grindr’s response to our previous public service
billboards on STD awareness were really tone deaf. We expected that
these businesses would be concerned about the sexual health of their
customers, from whom they make millions. Instead they called lawyers and
blocked our advertising,” said Whitney Engeran Cordova,
Senior Director, Public Health Division for AIDS Healthcare Foundation.

“AHF’s efforts to have a meaningful discussion about STD awareness and
prevention with Tinder went nowhere,” added Weinstein. “They denied that
hook up apps, and Tinder in particular, could possibly be a contributing
factor in the dramatic rise in STD rates. Our new Tinder/Grindr STD
billboards show that the gloves—and the clothes—are off in our battle
for increased STD awareness and prevention.”

Tinder, which was released in September 2012 on college campuses, is the
#1 Lifestyle app in both the iOS and Google Play app stores. The company stated
in May 2015 that “the single largest age group on Tinder, making up more
than half of our entire user base, is 18-24.” According to research firm GlobalWebIndex,
the app is being used largely in urban locations (76%) like Los Angeles.
Launched in 2009, Grindr is the most popular gay male location-based
mobile app with over 10 million user downloads and over 2
million daily active users in 192 countries.

AHF’s Wellness Centers provide free testing for sexually transmitted
diseases, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV. To find the
nearest location for STD screening and treatment, visit www.freestdcheck.org

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS
organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over
500,000 individuals in 36 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin
America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Eastern Europe. To learn
more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org,
find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth
and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare
and Instagram: @aidshealthcare

Contacts

AIDS Healthcare Foundation
Ged Kenslea, Senior
Director, Communications
+1.323.308.1833 work
+1.323.791.5526
mobile
gedk@aidshealth.org
or
Christopher
Johnson, Associate Director of Communications
+1.323.960.4846
work
+1.310.880.9913 mobile
christopher.johnson@aidshealth.org