Coachella Demands Removal of STD Testing Billboard

metroweekly.com:

freestdcheck.org and a photo of the Empire Polo Club, site of Coachella festival, which takes place annually over two separate weekends, with the first three days of musical acts starting on April 12.

The festival is expected to draw about 125,000 revelers. The billboard, erected along the Interstate 10 freeway last month, was paid for by the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a nonprofit focusing on HIV prevention, testing, and treatment.Coachella festival organizers quickly demanded AHF take down the ad.AHF Vice President of Marketing Jason Farmer told the Southern California newspaper The Press-Enterprise that an attorney for AEG Presents, the parent company of Goldenvoice, the lead organizer of the festival, had contacted AHF’s media placement company to request the removal of the billboard, alleging that the photo used in the ad constituted “copyright infringement.”Farmer said AEG Presents may also have objected to the billboard because they “felt it was putting a negative light” on the festival.The billboard doesn’t name the festival directly but features a photo of the festival environment, echoing the style of the official Coachella poster.The photo appears to be from Getty Images and has been purchased and used by several media outlets.AHF refused to take down the billboard, which will remain on display through April.“We don’t feel like we’re in the wrong,” Farmer said. “We talked to the owners of the billboard, too, and they were against taking it down.”Michael Weinstein, AHF’s president and co-founder, was less diplomatic. “What are Coachella organizers afraid of?” he said. “Do they really not know how people spend their time during festival weekends?”He added, “It doesn’t help anyone to bury their.