In his address at the International AIDS Conference that wrapped in Washington, D.C., on July 27th, Sir Elton John told the audience that "I should be dead" for having not taken precautions against HIV in the past.

AIDS 2012, as it's better known, was the most attended global HIV/AIDS conference to date. It made headlines this year not only for its return to the U.S. for the first time in 22 years, but for companies including Levi Strauss and MAC who continue to support the fight against the disease and prejudice that surrounds it.

The MAC AIDS Fund (MAF), the philanthropic arm of MAC Cosmetics, announced two major initiatives at AIDS 2012, continuing its leadership position as the largest corporate non-pharmaceutical funder in the HIV/AIDS arena.Continue reading...

Here's the official Lady Gaga for MAC Cosmetics' Viva Glam commercial. More brandbitems this week:

• Toyota tweets from Japan. Open for business.

• Chrysler's Twitter feed got in hot water over tweeting that nobody in Motor City "knows how to (bleeped!) drive."Continue reading...

Lady Gaga returns as the face and inspiration for MAC's annual Viva Glam line of makeup, which donates a portion of each item sold to the MAC AIDS Fund for HIV/AIDS research. Last year she shared the Viva Glam campaign with Cyndi Lauper; this year she's flying solo.