Media Coverage Of AIDS: Broad-Based, Consistent Over Past Decade

Focus Shifts, However, From Science/Medicine to Celebrity-Oriented

Embargoed for release until: 9:00 a.m. E.T., Wednesday, June 26, 1996

Contact: Matt James or Tina Hoff

Washington, D.C. — Media coverage in the U.S. of AIDS over the past decade has generally remained broad-based and consistent, emphasizing prevention and protection and avoiding becoming overly politicized, although focusing almost entirely on the epidemic as a domestic concern. However, while coverage in the early years of the epidemic focused heavily on the scientific and medical aspects of AIDS as an important new threat to public health, news items concerning AIDS in recent years have become more celebrity-oriented. These are among the key findings of the Kaiser Family Foundation’s new analysis of newspaper and network television coverage of AIDS from 1985 through early 1996. The study was conducted for the Foundation by Princeton Survey Research Associates (PSRA), and will be disseminated by the Columbia Journalism Review.

“By and large, the media did a good job covering AIDS over the past ten years,” said Mark Smith, executive vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation. “This may be why Americans have generally high levels of knowledge about how HIV is transmitted and can be prevented.”

The Kaiser/PSRA study analyzed media coverage of AIDS over the last ten years by examining 26 randomly-selected “typical” news weeks and eight peak weeks of AIDS news coverage triggered by a “major event” involving AIDS. Three national newspapers were monitored (The New York Times, The Washington Post, and USA Today), as well as the evening news programs of the three major broadcast networks: (ABC World News Tonight, CBS Evening News and NBC Nightly News). In addition to these national media outlets, two regional newspapers were selected: The St. Louis Post-Dispatch to represent local media in this country’s heartland; and The San Francisco Chronicle to represent local media serving a geographic areas disproportionately affected by AIDS.

Media Maintained Consistent, Broad-Based Coverage

During typical news weeks, the media examined in this study ran approximately 30 stories per week focused on AIDS. In a major event week, that number increased to at least 50 stories, registering an “off-the-charts” reading of 259 stories during the biggest AIDS news week in history — when Magic Johnson’s announced to the world that he was HIV-positive (November 1991). At least temporarily, major AIDS news events increase the overall volume and prominence of AIDS news stories.

Over the ten years, AIDS has not developed into a political story. In fact, only 3% of all stories in typical news weeks dealt with the impact of AIDS on the political process. Nor has AIDS coverage tended to focus on specific populations; rather most stories dealing with the impact of AIDS highlight its effects on all HIV-positive individuals (33%) or two or more of the higher-risk groups (29%).

Prevention/Protection a Major Focus of AIDS Reporting

AIDS prevention was the main focus of most AIDS news stories run during typical news weeks (20%), followed by treatment (13%), transmission (13%) and research (13%). Media coverage of these public education topics during typical news weeks peaked in the mid-to-late 1980s. Coverage of celebrities who have AIDS or are HIV positive, particularly Magic Johnson, have in recent years generated significant additional coverage in this area and at times when people may be more attentive.

“Though AIDS coverage has been thorough, trends in coverage indicate that this may be changing,” said Andrew Kohut, PSRA’s chairman. “Stories are getting shorter, focusing more on celebrities, and increasingly being found in the soft news sections of papers. Over time, this could have an impact on the public’s knowledge of issues in AIDS.”

AIDS Treated As a Domestic Story

The media treated AIDS as almost exclusively a domestic story. Overall, only 4% of AIDS stories were filed from non-U.S. datelines, and the sole recurring lead with any international component involved AIDS as an immigration issue (1%).

Major Changes in AIDS News Coverage Over Time

• Celebrities have replaced the scientific/medical community as top news makers in AIDS stories. In 1989, members of the scientific and medical community were the principal news maker in about three of 10 (29%) AIDS focused-stories during typical weeks, while celebrities or public figures played this role in only 5% of stories. In five of the six subsequent years, however, celebrities emerged as the leading principal news maker. In 1995, the last full year of the study, celebrities outscored the scientific and medical community by 25% to 14% as the top news maker.
• AIDS coverage has shifted toward the “softer” news sections, such as sports and lifestyle. Prior to 1991, AIDS coverage was virtually nonexistent in sports sections of newspapers and newscasts. But in three of the five years from 1992-95, sports accounted for 15% or more of all AIDS-focused stories. Since the late 1980s, the lifestyle section’s share of AIDS coverage has also about doubled. Coverage in both was no doubt driven by the increased focus on celebrities as news makers around AIDS issues.
• AIDS has been incorporated into the regular news agenda. In 1987, two-thirds (69%) of all news stories with any mention of AIDS had AIDS as their primary focus, while one-third (31%) made only a passing reference to the disease . By 1994, these figures reversed themselves (30% primary focus vs. 70% not primary focus) as AIDS was more often treated as one of several national problems along with crime, substance abuse, homelessness, etc.
• The length of the average AIDS news story has decreased. In three of the first four years studied (1985-88), over a quarter of all AIDS-focused newspaper stories run during a typical week were 700 words or more. In subsequent years, longer articles accounted for such a large a share of AIDS newspaper stories only once (1993=26%).

Trends in Media Coverage of AIDS and the Public’s Knowledge and Attitudes Toward the Disease and Epidemic. Though surveys often find that Americans are ill-informed about most national issues, they are generally knowledgeable about AIDS prevention and treatment, which have been major focuses of media coverage over the past 10 years. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s survey of Americans on AIDS, most Americans know that AIDS can be transmitted through sexual intercourse (97%), that a pregnant woman with AIDS can pass the virus to her baby (94%), that no vaccine is currently available to protect a person from getting AIDS (88%), and that drugs are available that can lengthen the life of a person infected with AIDS (75%).

One notable gap in the public’s knowledge, however, is a misperception among most Americans (51%) that the proportion of AIDS cases that occur inside the U.S. relative to the rest of the world is greater than it really is. This may be due in part to the lack of international AIDS stories in the U.S. media, which largely focuses on the epidemic from a domestic perspective.

Americans say they rely heavily upon the news media for information on AIDS, with television (67%), newspapers (54%) and magazines (50%) being cited as the top three major sources for the public of AIDS information.

Methodology

For this study of AIDS news coverage, Princeton Survey Research Associates examined over 3,100 news stories including the terms “AIDS” or “HIV” that appeared in selected newspapers and television newscasts during 34 designated weeks between 1985 and 1996.

The Kaiser Survey on Americans and AIDS/HIV was a national random-sample telephone survey of 1,511 adults, 18 years and older, including over samples of 250 African Americans and 250 Hispanics. The survey was designed by the Kaiser family foundation and PSRA and was conducted by PSRA between November 27-December 17, 1995.

* * *The Kaiser Family Foundation, based in Menlo Park, California, is a non-profit, independent national health care philanthropy and is not associated with Kaiser Permanente or Kaiser Industries. The Foundation’s work is focused on four main area: health policy, reproductive health, HIV and health and development in South Africa.

Single copies of the study, Covering the Epidemic: AIDS in the News Media, 1985-1996 (#1157) are available free-of-charge by calling the Kaiser Family Foundation’s publication request line at 1-800-656-4533. For additional information, including the complete findings from the survey referenced in this release on Americans and AIDS, please also ask for the Kaiser Family Foundation’s AIDS Public Information Kit (#1118). Also included in this kit are: Talking With Your Kids About AIDS: A Guide for Parents and fact sheets on the HIV epidemic and specific topics related to AIDS prevention and treatment.

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Covering the Epidemic: AIDS in the News Media, 1985-1996:Press Release Survey Chart Pack Fact Sheets

Teens on Sex:

What They Say About the Media as an Information Source

According to a new survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a third (34%) of teens say some teens have sex because television and movies make it seem “normal” for teens to be sexually active. But, many teens also say that television and movies, after their teachers, parents, and friends, are important sources of information for them on pregnancy and birth control. Nearly a quarter (23%) say they learned “a lot” about these topics from TV shows and movies, and 31% say they’ve learned “some” this way.

Among teenage girls, fashion/beauty magazines, particularly the ones targeted specifically to them, are also an important source of information on sex and its consequences. Seven out of 10 girls age 12-18 say they “regularly” read magazines, such as Seventeen, YM, and Teen. Half (51%) of these readers — or more than a third (36%) of all girls — say the magazines are an important source of information for them on sex, birth control, and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. A large majority (69%) — or 21% of all teen girls — say this is often information they don’t get elsewhere.

One in five of all teenage girls 12-18 says she learned “a lot” about pregnancy and birth control from magazines. That’s a higher proportion of girls than those who say they learned “a lot” about these topics from brothers, sisters, or cousins (13%); family planning clinics (13%); or doctors and nurses (12%).

Source: Kaiser Family Foundation Survey on Teens and Sex, June 1996

This fact sheet was prepared as background material for a briefing held on June 24, 1996, entitled “The Entertainment Media As ‘Sex Educators?’ And, Other Ways Teens Learn about Sex, Contraception, STDs, and AIDS.” It was jointly sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the National Press Foundation, and The Alan Guttmacher Institute as part of an ongoing series for journalists on reproductive health topics — specifically, unplanned pregnancy, teenage pregnancy, contraception, and abortion.

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The Entertainment Media As “Sex Educators?”:Fact Sheet Fact Sheet Update Q & A Resource List

12. Well now I’m going to read a list of reasons why some people say teenagers have sex. For each one, please tell me if you think this is often a reason, sometimes a reason, or hardly ever a reason teenagers have sex. (First), (Insert item. Rotate items.) — how often is this a reason?

Often a reason Sometimes a reason Hardly ever a reason DK Ref. a. Because they think they are ready to have sex 55 38 6 1 * Boys 51 42 6 1 0 Girls 59 35 6 * * Has Had Sex 71 26 3 0 0 Not Yet Had Sex 48 43 8 1 0 b. Because they want to be popular 42 41 16 1 * Boys 42 43 15 1 0 Girls 41 40 18 1 * Has Had Sex 43 41 15 * 0 Not Yet Had Sex 41 41 17 1 0 c. Because the (boy/girl) they’re with is pressuring them 41 39 19 1 * Boys 23 44 33 1 0 Girls 61 34 5 * * Has Had Sex 38 40 22 * 0 Not Yet Had Sex 43 38 18 * 0 d. Because they don’t want people to tease them for being a virgin 41 40 19 * * Boys 43 41 15 1 0 Girls 38 39 22 1 * Has Had Sex 42 37 20 0 0 Not Yet Had Sex 40 41 18 1 0 e. Because they’re just curious about it 41 44 14 1 * Boys 40 42 17 1 0 Girls 42 47 11 * * Has Had Sex 50 40 11 0 0 Not Yet Had Sex 38 46 16 1 0 f. Because they want to be loved 36 48 16 * * Boys 28 52 19 1 0 Girls 45 42 13 * * Has Had Sex 49 43 14 0 0 Not Yet Had Sex 33 49 17 1 0 g. Because movies and TV shows make it seem like it is normal for teenagers to have sex 34 42 23 1 * Boys 36 43 20 1 0 Girls 32 40 27 1 * Has Had Sex 32 40 28 * 0 Not Yet Had Sex 35 42 21 2 0 h. Because someone forces them to have sex against their will 22 53 24 1 * Boys 19 48 32 2 0 Girls 26 59 14 1 * Has Had Sex 23 55 22 * 0 Not Yet Had Sex 22 52 25 1 0 13. Have you yourself ever had sexual intercourse?

Total Boys Girls Has Had Sex Not Yet Had Sex Yes, had intercourse 29 33 25 100 0 No 70 66 73 0 100 Not sure/Don’t know * 1 * 0 0 Refused 1 1 2 0 0 14. Do you think either of your parents knows you have had sex? You don’t have to say which parent, just say yes if you think either one does.

Based on those who have had sexual intercourse. (n=497)

Total Boys Girls Yes 65 61 69 No 32 35 29 Don’t know 3 4 2 Refused * * 0 15. Whenever you have had sex, have you or the (boy/girl) you were with used birth control all the time, most of the time, only sometimes, or not at all?

Based on those who have had sexual intercourse. (n=497)

Total Boys Girls All the time 48 53 42 Most of the time 24 18 31 Only sometimes 15 14 17 Not at all 11 12 9 Not sure/Don’t know 1 2 0 Refused 1 1 0 16. Which of the following are reasons you sometimes don’t use birth control — just say “yes” or “no” for each one. (First), (Insert item. Rotate items) — is this a reason for you?

Based on those who have had sexual intercourse and did not use birth control all the time.

Yes No DK Ref. a. You can’t always plan ahead for when you’re going to have sex 66 34 * 0 (n=252) Boys 62 39 0 0 Girls 70 29 1 1 b. (You/the girl you’re with) (don’t/doesn’t) like the side effects of certain kinds of birth control 33 65 2 0 (n=253) Boys 29 67 3 0 Girls 37 63 1 0 c. The (boy/girl) you’re with doesn’t want to use birth control 30 70 * 0 (n=253) Boys 27 73 * 0 Girls 32 68 0 0 d. Birth control interrupts the moment 30 69 1 0 (n=253) Boys 27 72 1 0 Girls 33 66 1 0 e. Sex doesn’t feel as good with birth control 29 70 1 0 (n=253) Boys 31 69 1 0 Girls 27 72 1 0 f. You feel sure (the girl you’re with/you) won’t get pregnant if you risk it once in a while 28 71 1 0 (n=253) Boys 31 67 2 0 Girls 25 75 0 0 g. You can’t afford birth control 12 87 * 1 (n=253) Boys 10 90 * 0 Girls 14 84 0 2 h. It’s too embarrassing to talk about birth control with the (boy/girl) you’re with 10 90 0 0 (n=253) Boys 12 88 0 0 Girls 8 92 0 0 i. (You/the girl you’re with) (want/wants) to have a baby 7 92 1 0 (n=253) Boys 9 90 2 0 Girls 6 95 0 0 j. You or the (boy/girl) you’re with (don’t/doesn’t) know how to use birth control 7 93 * 0 (n=253) Boys 11 89 * 0 Girls 3 97 * 0 17. I’m going to read the list of birth control methods one more time. I want you to tell me which of these you or the (boy/girl) you were with have used most often by saying “yes” when I get to that method. If you use two methods at a time, you can say yes twice. Have you most often used (Insert item)?

Respondents read abstinence and each method that they said they knew “a lot” or “a little” about in Q.23. Based on those who have had sexual intercourse and have used birth control.

Total Boys Girls Condoms 87 88 86 Birth control pills 41 44 38 Withdrawal 15 16 14 Depo Provera (the shot) 6 4 8 The rhythm method (safe time of the month) 5 6 3 Norplant (implants) * * 1 Some other method 2 2 1 Don’t know * * 0 Refused 0 0 0 (n=418) Total exceeds 100% due to multiple responses.

18. If girl: Have you ever taken a pregnancy test? (If yes: How many times have you done this?)

If boy: As far as you know, has any girl ever taken a pregnancy test because she thought you got her pregnant? (If yes: How many times has this happened?)

Based on those who have had sexual intercourse.

Total Boys Girls Once 16 12 21 Two times 6 4 9 Three times 3 1 6 Four times 2 3 1 Five or more times 1 * 2 No/Never 68 77 55 Don’t know 1 1 2 Refused 3 2 4 (n=497)

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Survey on Teens and Sex: What They Say Teens Today Need to Know, And Who They Listen To:Press Release Survey Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Chart Pack

A national random-sample telephone survey of 1,510 teenagers age 12-18, conducted for the Foundation by Princeton Survey Research Associates between March 28, 1996 and May 5, 1996. The survey finds that most teens have enough information about how girls get pregnant, but not how to use different kinds of birth control. The survey also revealed a number of misperceptions about the consequences of pregnancy and that most teens say a common reason teens do get pregnant is that they don’t think it will happen to them. These findings were presented at a briefing held in New York on June 24, 1996, co-sponsored by Kaiser Family Foundation, the National Press Foundation and The Alan Guttmacher Institute, as part of an ongoing briefing series for journalist on reproductive health issues: Emerging Issues in Reproductive Health.

How the Changing Health Care Marketplace Affects Coverage and Access to Reproductive Health

A fact sheet, Q&A and resource list prepared for a media briefing held in New York on March 27, 1996. The purpose of the briefing was to respond to questions about how reproductive health services are currently delivered in managed care systems and to explore the implications of the growing managed care environment for women’s ability to get the reproductive health care they need. A copy of the original agenda is also included in this packet of materials. For additional background materials, please see #1081, Reproductive Health and Managed Care.

• Q&A: The Growth of Managed Care: Are Women Getting What They Need?

• Fact Sheet: Reproductive Health Coverage in Managed Care Settings
• Resource List: The Growth of Managed Care: Are Women Getting What They Need?

Edward Laumann, Ph.D., Department of Sociology, University of Chicago, shares findings from the 1994 National Health and Social Life Survey, which suggest that having a violent or coercive first sexual experience is not as rare an occurrence as had been previously believed. Seminar participants — experts on sexuality and sexual relationships — debate the prevalence and consequences of abusive and negative first sexual experiences. This publication was produced as part of an ongoing seminar series, jointly sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI), on “Sexuality and American Social Policy.” The series is co-sponsored by The Alan Guttmacher Institute, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and The Population Council.

• Report:

Monographs as part of the ongoing seminar series, jointly sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI), “.”

• Resource List:

This side-by-side compares proposals for restructuring of the Medicaid program and with current law.

• Report: A Comparison of Medicaid Provisions Under Current Law

A national effort to provide the latest informationon AIDS policy, prevention and treatmentReducing the Spread ofHIV

• Who’s At Risk?
• Can People Change Their Behaviors?
• Are HIV Prevention Programs Worthwhile?
• What Programs Work Best?
• What Challenges Remain?
• What Needs to Be Done?

Who’s At Risk?HIV is a disease of behaviors. For the most part, it is what you do that puts you at risk of AIDS.The basic routes of transmission–unprotected sex, sharing contaminated drug injectionequipment, from infected mothers to their newborn babies, or receiving contaminated blood orblood products–have been known for well over a decade. More than 80 percent of all cases ofAIDS have been among men who have sex with men and injection drug users. Despite a clearunderstanding of how the virus is transmitted,

In 1993, AIDS became the leading cause of death for adults aged 25-44 in the U.S. HIV isincreasingly a disease of the young–one in four new infections occurs in people under age 22.

People of color bear a disproportionate share of the burden of AIDS. African Americans andLatinos together comprise approximately 23% of the U.S. population, yet they account for nearly50% of the AIDS cases.

Comparison of US AIDS Patients (244,372) (as of 12/31/92) and Estimated 1991 U.S. Population by Race/Ethnicity

A White, Non-Hispanic D Asian/Pacific IslanderB Black, Non-Hispanic E American Indian/Alaskan Native C HispanicSource: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Gay and bisexual men represent a decreasing percentage of newly diagnosed cases of AIDS, bothbecause their rate of increase has slowed in recent years (1989 through 1994) and because theepidemic is growing more rapidly in other segments of the population. Nevertheless, gay andbisexual men continue to constitute the largest portion of people with newly diagnosed AIDS, sosuccess in controlling the AIDS epidemic depends on preventing new cases among this group.

Approximately one-third of all AIDS cases are linked to injection drug use. For women, 64% ofall AIDS cases are due to injection drug use or sex with partners who inject drugs. Injecting druguse is the source of infection for more than half of all children born with HIV.

AIDS is also a growing problem for women. Women are one of the fastest growing populationsbeing infected with HIV. The number of AIDS cases among women is doubling every one to twoyears. Because of the far greater number of cases among men in the early years of the epidemic,risks to women were often overlooked.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Can People Change Their Behaviors?Adopting healthy habits is not always an easy task. Knowledge and awareness of health risks areessential. Surveys show a remarkable degree of awareness regarding the basic facts of HIVtransmission among American adults and teenagers. This is a starting point for behavior change,but, as with other health risks, knowledge alone is unlikely to be sufficient to achieve and sustainthe behavioral changes necessary to avoid HIV transmission.

In the face of the threat of HIV, many have changed their behaviors. Gay and bisexual men madedramatic changes in the rate of unprotected sex and multiple sexual partners in the early years ofthe epidemic. In San Francisco, new infections reached a high of 8,000 in 1982. In 1994, theestimated number of new HIV infections was 1,000. This dramatic reduction in new infections canbe attributed in part to comprehensive community-based HIV prevention efforts aimed at gay andbisexual men that began in the early 1980s.

Injection drug users, despite much conventional wisdom to the contrary, have also changedbehavior, reducing the sharing of injection equipment. The rate of HIV infection among druginjectors varies considerably from city to city ranging anywhere from a few percent to 60 percentor more. This variability underscores the opportunities which remain to decrease the transmissionof HIV among drug injectors, and thereby avoiding further spread to sexual partners andoffspring.

Are HIV Prevention Programs Worthwhile?With prospects for a preventive vaccine still quite remote, HIV prevention and education effortsremain critical to efforts to reduce the numbers of new HIV infections. The case forprevention

The is a national random-sample telephone survey of 1,211 adults, 18 years and older, including over samples of 250 African Americans and 250 Hispanics.

Chartpack (.pdf)

Toplines/Survey (.pdf)