Pavel Lobkov, a television presenter on independent Russian network Dozhd, revealed during a live broadcast that he was HIV-positive, the first ever Charlie Sheen-style HIV revelation on Russian TV.
Lobkov, 48, said earlier this week that he learned that he had HIV in 2003 while working for another network, NTV.
“I decided that it had to be done, now or never,” Lobkov told FM radio station Govorit Moskva the following day. “There is a moment in life when you have to do experiments, including experiments on yourself.”
According to Lobkov, he made his revelation for the sake of HIV-positive people with problems similar to his, and to better inform the general public over their fears relating to those with HIV.
“I made it public in order to show people using a real example that there are grounded fears and there are ungrounded fears,” he said. “Society has become bloodthirsty — it wanted a victim, and I went for it.”
Lobkov also added that his medical insurance was canceled immediately after he was diagnosed and that he’s had problems finding treatment for other conditions ever since.
Many people have expressed support for him across social media. Among them was Anton Krasovsky, a former TV presenter sacked from his job at a state-run network two years ago after coming out during a live broadcast.
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