AIDS, Public Figures, and Rights of Privacy

Arthur Ashe, former professional tennis player and Wimbledon champion, addressed a luncheon of the National Press Club to discuss his illness and the obligations of the media to report on his condition due to his public status. In April 1992, Mr. Ashe held a news conference to announce he carried the HIV virus which he apparently contracted through a blood transfusion during an operation years before. Mr. Ashe held the news conference after a USA Today reporter asked him if he was carrying the HIV virus, although he had known about his HIV positive status for three years. The news conference set off controversy in the media between those who felt his medical status was a personal issue and those who felt his status as a public figure mandated publicizing his medical status in the media. Mr. Ashe responded to questions following his prepared remarks.