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7/21/2019 2.AIDS at 21 Media Coverage of the HIV Epidemic 1981 2002 Supplement to the March April 2004 Issue of CJR (1)
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Princeton SurveyResearch AssociatesInternational
too t e . . y surprise in t e 1980s, an it continues to e a
ea t epi emic wit unique c aracteristics. s a news topic,
as not on y een a ea t story, ut a so one a out arts, cu ture, ta oo,
sexua ity, re igion, ce e rity, usiness, an po itics on t e oca , nationa , an
global stage. Media coverage of the HIV/AIDS epidemic has, at times, helped
shape the policy agenda, while also reecting current policy discussions,debates and important events. In many cases, the news media have served as
an important source of information about the epidemic for the public. In an
October 2003 survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 72% of the U.S. public
sai t at most o t e in ormation t ey get a out comes rom t e
me ia, inc u ing te evision, newspapers, an ra io
Recently, there has been a growing discussion about the scope and focus of
news coverage of HIV/AIDS by the U.S. news media. Questions have been
raised about whether there is AIDS fatigue on the par t of media organizations.
Journalists report great di culty in persuading their news organizations to run
HIV/AIDS stories. Critics say coverage of global HIV is inadequate and coverageof the HIV epidemic in the United States is disappearing. Some also question
t e a ance o topics covere in news, particu ar y wit regar to coverage
o treatment versus prevention. t ers say t at, in act, t ere ave een ew
un amenta y new scienti c eve opments in t e epi emic recent y, an
t at or t e most part, is not news.
Over the last few years, there has also been a decline in the share of the U.S.
public viewing HIV/AIDS as the nations most urgent health problem (see Public
Opinion side box). It is di cult to measure a cause-eect relationship between
public opinion and media coverage. Yet, the old adage that the media doesnt
tell the public what to think, but does tell them what to think about, suggests
t at ec ining coverage o in t e news mig t ave some re ations ip
to t e pu ics ec ining perception o t e urgency o t e pro em. timate y,
coverage o y mainstream news me ia serves as one important
gauge o ow prominent t e issue is on t e po icy an cu tura agen a o t e
nation, an ow overa attention to t e epi emic as c ange over time, ot
in terms of quantity and content.
The Kaiser Family Foundation, in conjunction with Princeton Survey Research
Associates, conducted a comprehensive examination of media coverage of
HIV/AIDS over the 22-year time period from the rst news reports in 1981
t roug ecem er 2002. is stu y see s to answer questions suc as: as
amount o coverage o t e epi emic increase or ecrease over time ow
ave t e topics covere c ange ow a s coverage o in t e . . are
What about coverage of the global epidemic? How often do stories strive to
educate the public about transmission, prevention, testing, and treatment?
What is the balance of optimism versus pessimism in AIDS coverage? Are thimportant dierences between print and broadcast coverage?
AIDS at 21: Media Coverage of the HIV Epidemic 1981-2002
Mollyann Brodie, Ph.D. Vice President, Director, Public Opinion and Media Research, Kaiser Family FoundationElizabeth Hamel, Senior Research Associate, Kaiser Family Foundation
Lee Ann Brady, Senior Project Director, Princeton Survey Research Associates International
Jennifer Kates, M.A., M.P.A., Director, HIV Policy, Kaiser Family Foundation
Drew E. Altman, Ph.D. President, Kaiser Family Foundation
Publ c Op n on: The proportion of Americans naming HIV/AIDS as the nations numbe
one health problem has been steadily declining over time (Chart 1). In 1987, nearly
seven in ten Americans (68%) named HIV/AIDS as the most urgent health problem
facing the nation in an open-ended question, and it ranked as the number one cited
problem through 1997. By 2002, 17% named HIV/AIDS in the same question, as mor
responses focused on cancer, health care costs, health insurance, and access to health
care. Americans are now more likely to name HIV/AIDS as the most urgent healt
problem facing the world than as the most urgent health problem facing the nation
Chart 1. Percent nam ng HIV/AIDS as the most urgenthealth problem facing the nation/world
0%
10%
0%
0%
40%
50%
0%
Oct-87 Jan-90 Nov-95 ep-97 ug-00 Jun-02
Sources: Gallup Poll Oct-1987; Kaiser Family Foundation surveys 1990-2002
4%
26%
17%
33%37%
...the world
...the nation
Kaiser Family Foundation Health Poll Reportsurvey, conducted October 3-5, 2003.
49%
6
Pe
rcentnamingHIV
upp ement to t e arc pri 2004 issue o o um ia ourna ism e
7/21/2019 2.AIDS at 21 Media Coverage of the HIV Epidemic 1981 2002 Supplement to the March April 2004 Issue of CJR (1)
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2
This number is likely to be a slight underestimate, since not all media sources were included in the earliest years of the study see Methodology section for full details.
The analysis presented here is based on a sample of more than 9,000 total
news stories from major U.S. print and broadcast sources, including four
major national newspapers (The New York Times, he Wall Street Journal,
The Washington Post, and USA Today , three major regional papers in areas
particularly hard-hit by the HIV/AIDS epidemic (the San Francisco Chronicle
The Miami Heraldand the Los Angeles Times , and three major network news
programs or ews onig t, vening ews, an ig t y ews .
tories were a so co e rom e on on imes or comparison to . . print
me ia. ote: a n ings re er to coverage rom . . me ia out ets on y, un ess
ot erwise note .
The study covers the time period from 1981 through 2002. For ease of reporting
ndings, certain years were grouped together according to stages and key
events in the epidemic. The groupings used throughout this report are:1981 1986: Early years of the epidemic, the Reagan years
1987 1990: Increased attention to epidemic, advent of AZT, rst Bush presidency
1991 1995: Magic Johnson and Arthur Ashe, Clinton presidency
1996 1999: Introduction of protease inhibitors, more people living with HIV/AIDS
2000 2002: Increased attention to the global epidemic, second Bush presidency
Volume of Coverage Over Time and Key Events
Since the late 1980s, there has been a decrease in total media coverage
o . uring t e 22-year time perio rom 1981 to 2002, t ere were
more t an 41,000 news stories a out in t e se ecte me ia out ets,
inc u ing over 39,000 print stories an more t an 2,000 roa cast stories . or
t e newspapers an roa casts inc u e in t is stu y, tota coverage o
increase uring t e ear y 1980s, pea e at over 5,000 stories in
1987, and declined steadily to fewer than 1,000 stories in 2002. While this
decline in coverage follows a similar pattern to the number of new AIDS cases
being diagnosed in the U.S. (Chart 2), the decline in media coverage began
about 6 years before the decline in cases, and continued even as the cumulative
number of AIDS cases diagnosed in the U.S. rose above 500,000 (Chart 3).
Minor peaks in coverage after 1987 were driven by major developments in t
epi emic, occurring in 1991 agic o nsons announcement t at e was
positive), 1996 (the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy), and
2001 (increased attention to the global epidemic).
Coverage reected key news-generating events.Media coverage of
genera y re ecte ey events t at ave occurre over t e istory
o t e epi emic a e 1 . n t e ear y 1980s, me ia coverage o was
ominate y t e initia reports o gay pneumonia 83% o stories
in 1981; 50% in 1982 , stories a out an t e country s oo supp y(peaking at 15% of stories in 1985), the closing of San Francisco bathhouses
(13% in 1984), and the Reagan administrations response to AIDS (6% in
1983). Between 1987 and 1990, there was not a single major story that
dominated media coverage, though there was continued coverage of the
Reagan administrations response (8% of stories in 1987), as well as coverag
of the introduction of AZT (5% in 1989) and the International AIDS Conferen
in an rancisco 7% in 1990 . etween 1991 an 1995, t e iggest
news story was agic o nsons announcement t at e was positive
16% o stories in 1992 . is time perio a so inc u e coverage o tennis
p ayer rt ur s es eat rom 5% o stories in 1992 , t e inton
ministrations response to t e isease 5% in 1993 , an stories a out
HIV/AIDS and U.S. immigration (5% in 1993). Beginning in 1996, coverage
began to focus on the introduction of protease inhibitors and combination
therapy to treat people with HIV (13% of stories in 1997), as well as Magic
Johnsons return to professional basketball (5% in 1996), continued coverag
of the Clinton Administrations response (6% in 1997), and increasing attent
to internationa con erences 6% in 1996 an 1998; 8% in 2000; 11% i
2002 . ina y, etween 2000 an 2002, t e ocus o me ia covera
s i te to t e emerging stories o in rica pea ing at 14% in 200
t e e ate over rug prices an patents 12% in 2001 ; an t e o a un
ig t , u ercu osis an a aria 6% in 2001 .
While those who closely follow the AIDS epidemic and even some who donot will remember these key events, its important to note that most of th
stories did not account for more than one to two percent of coverage overal
uring t e 22-year time perio agic o nson accounte or t e ig est s
o overa coverage at 3% . n a ition to news-generating events, t ere we
a ew ot er recurring t emes t at i not emerge or ominate in any partic
year, ut i account or sma ut signi cant s ares o coverage overa ,
inc u ing iving wit 5% overa , an t e oo supp y 4%
international AIDS conferences (3%), AIDS activism (2%), and AIDS vaccine
development (2%).
Other stories that might have been expected to emerge as key news-generaevents never garnered more than 5% of HIV media coverage in any given ye
inc u ing stories a out yan ite, an n iana teenager wit emop i ia w
contracte an oug t to e a owe to atten pu ic sc oo pea ing at
3% in 1986 ; t e inci ent in ori a in w ic t e ay ami y was urne out
o t eir ome pea ing at 3% in 1987 ; t e e ms amen ment pea ing at
1% in 1986 ; t e ationa ommission on pea ing at 2% in 1989, 199
and 1992); the case of Kimberly Bergalis, who contracted HIV from her dent
(peaking at 4% in 1991); World AIDS day (peaking at 4% in 1994 and 1998);
and the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV and AIDS (peaking at 1% in 199
and 1998).
Chart 2. Total number of HIV/AIDS news stor es n selected
med a outlets and number of new U.S. AIDS cases d agnosed by year
urce: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
000
000
000
000
000
1981
1982
1983
198
1985
1986
1987
1988
1990
1991
1992
1993
199
1995
1996
1997
1999
2000
2002
10
0
0
0
0
0
NumberofAIDScases(thousands)
Number of HIV/AIDSnews stor es
Number of new U.S.AIDS cases diagnosed *
7/21/2019 2.AIDS at 21 Media Coverage of the HIV Epidemic 1981 2002 Supplement to the March April 2004 Issue of CJR (1)
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ent/Recurring Theme 1 98 1 19 82 19 83 1 98 4 1 985 19 86 1 98 7 1 988 19 89 1 99 0 1 99 1 19 92 1 99 3 1 99 4 19 95 19 96 1 99 7 19 98 19 99 2 00 0 2 001 20
tial CDC Reports 83% 50% 4% 3% 1%
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hart 5. Total number of HIV/AIDS news stor es
with domestic vs. global focus by year
000
000
000
000
000
000
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1995
1996
1997
2001
2002
Total number of HIV/AIDSstories
Stories with U.S.
perspective only
Stories with at least someglobal perspective
Percentofstorie
1981
198
198
1986
1987
1988
1990
1991
1992
199
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
20%
30%
40%
60%
70%
80%
90%
10%
0%
U.S. perspective only At least some global perspective Percent of stories with non-U.S
hart 4. Number of HIV/AIDS stories per month,
w th nternat onal AIDS conference months h ghl ghted
00
00
00
00
Jan-
85
Jan-
86
Jan-
87
Jan-
88
Jan-
89
Jan-
90
Jan-
91
Jan-
92
Jan-
93
Jan-
94
Jan-
95
Jan-
96
Jan-
97
Jan-
98
Jan-
99
Jan-
00
Jan-
01
Jan-
02
A r-85
Jun-86
un-
Jun-88Jun-89
Jun-90
Jun-91Jul-92
Jun-93
ug-Jul-96
Jun-98Jul-00
Jul-0
Over time, international AIDS conferences have increasingly become a
key news-generating event. Coverage of international AIDS conferences
ccounted for 3% of all HIV/AIDS news stories, and represented an increasing
hare of coverage over time. News coverage of such conferences accounted for
% of stories in 1996 and 1998, 8% in 2000, and 11% in 2002 (Table 1). This
increase was main y riven y roa cast coverage re ate to t e con erences;
uc coverage accounte or 36% o a roa cast coverage o in
002. er aps more important y, tota me ia coverage o increase
igni cant y uring mont s in w ic t e con erences occurre art 4 .
The number of HIV/AIDS news stories in months in which international AIDS
onferences took place was on average 48% higher than the average number
f stories per month in a given year. World AIDS Day was less of a driver ofoverage, with the average number of stories in December each year being
roughly equivalent to the average number of stories per month for that year.
Domestic Versus International Focus of Coverage
There has been a recent increase in coverage of the global epidemic an
simultaneous decline in domestic coverage. Media coverage of HIV/A
was mainly U.S.-focused throughout this 22-year time period, with 94% of
ll stories having a U.S. dateline, and 86% presenting a U.S.-only perspectiv
eginning in t e ate 1990s, t ere was a signi cant increase in coverage
presenting a g o a perspective, wit a simu taneous ec ine in coverage o
omestic story art 5 an art 6 . etween 1997 an 2002, t e num er
tories in t e se ecte me ia out ets presenting at east some g o a perspeincreased 118% from 177 to 386, while the number of stories with a U.S.-on
perspective decreased 57% from 1227 to 527. By 2001 and 2002, more tha
ne in ve HIV/AIDS news stories had a non-U.S. dateline, and more than 40
presented at least some global perspective.
e recent ncrease n g o a coverage was ma n y r ven y roa cas
news. roug out t e time perio , an particu ary etween 2000 an
002, roa cast news stories were more i e y to present a g o a perspecti
than print news. From 1981 through 1999, 17% of broadcast news stories
had at least some global perspective, compared with 12% of newspaper
tories. During 2000-2002, 62% of broadcast stories had at least some glob
perspective, compared with 40% of newspaper stories. Broadcast stories d
this time period were also somewhat more likely to have a non-U.S. datelin(25% of broadcast versus 18% of print).
n a ition to i erences etween roa cast an print news, t ere were a s
i erences in . . versus g o a perspectives among t e i erent newspap
amp e . mong newspaper stories, nationa y ocuse papers 19%
were more likely than regionally focused papers (11%) to include a global
perspective, particularly during 2000-2002 (49% of coverage in nationally
focused papers versus 30% in regionally focused papers presented a global
perspective in 2000-2002).
hart 6. Percent of stor es w th U.S. vs. global perspect ve
nd percent with non-U.S. dateline by year
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n or er to provi e an in ication o t e i erences etween . . an uropean
coverage in terms o ocus on t e g o a epi emic, we inc u e 610 stories
rom e on on imesin a comparison samp e or t e same time perio .
roug out t e time perio , coverage in e on on imeswas more i e y t an
U.S. print coverage to present a global perspective. Overall, 36% of on on
imescoverage presented a non-U.K. perspective, compared with 14% of total
U.S. print coverage (and 19% of coverage by nationally focused U.S. papers)that presented a non-U.S. perspective. Similarly, 14% of London Timescoverage
had a non-U.K. dateline, compared with 6% of total U.S. print coverage
(and 7% of coverage by nationally focused U.S. papers) that had a non-U.S.
ate ine. uring 2000-2002, . . print coverage was more simi ar to on on
imescoverage in t e amount o g o a perspective presente . n t ese years,
48% o on on imesstories presente a non- . . perspective, compare wit
40% o tota . . print coverage an 49% o coverage in nationa y ocuse
U.S. papers) that presented a non-U.S. perspective. At the same time, 27% of
London Timesstories had a non-U.K. dateline, compared with 18% of total U.S.
print coverage (and 22% of coverage in nationally focused U.S. papers) that had
a non-U.S. dateline.
ortraya o ecte opu at ons
ortraya o t e a ecte popu at on a so s te towar s a
g o a ocus. irroring t e s i t in coverage towar s t e g o a epi emic,
there was a decrease over time in the focus of media coverage on the U.S.
population as the aected population. Between 1981 and 1986, 18% of stories
focused on the U.S. population as the aected population, compared with 10%
between 2000 and 2002. During this same time frame, there was an increase in
focus on the world population as the aected population (2% to 6%), as well as
non-U.S. populations in general (2% to 7%), and African (1% to 19%) and Asian
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hart 7. Percent of optimistic/pessimistic
tories by period and media type
% 20% 0% 0% 80% 100%
roadcast
Printroadcast
roadcast
roadcast
roadcast
ptimistic Neutral Pessimistic
ver time, t ere were ec ines in stories a out transmission 17% in 1981-
1986 to 3% in 2000-2002 , socia issues suc as iscrimination an ousing
(15% to 4%), and HIV testing (7% to 2%). At the same time, there was a large
increase in stories about government funding/nancing for HIV/AIDS (7% to
18%), including the cost of prescription drugs (
7/21/2019 2.AIDS at 21 Media Coverage of the HIV Epidemic 1981 2002 Supplement to the March April 2004 Issue of CJR (1)
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was possible to be infected by touching a toilet seat . oo ing at coverage
over the entire time period, 36% of stories included at least some consumer
information/education component, though most of these (27% of all
stories) included information/education just as a passing reference. Of those
stories that had at least some educational component, 18% were about HIV
prevention and protection, 13% were about research, another 13% were about
transmission, 10% were a out socia issues suc as iscrimination an stigma,
an t e remain er were a out a variety o ot er topics.
ver time, t e percentage o stories containing at east some consumer
education declined. The period with the highest proportion of stories
containing consumer education was 1981-1986, when 48% of stories contained
an educational component. This proportion fell to 37% in 1987-1990, and has
since declined steadily to 30% in 2000-2002.
CONCLUSIONS
ne o t e main questions raise a out me ia coverage o in recent
years is w et er t ere as een me ia atigue in covering t e story. ase on
this study, some might argue that such fatigue did in fact occur, as evidenced
not only by a decline in the total number of stories over time, but also by the
decreased reporting on the domestic epidemic. This decline coincided with
a change in the nature of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S. from an absolute
death sentence to a chronic disease that more people live with and manage
day to day. Others might argue that this does not amount to AIDS fatigue, and
in act it is t e usua an customary news practice to ocus on ot er t ings
w en an epi emic switc es to a g o a ocus, w en t ere are no major new
eve opments in terms o vaccines an treatment, an w en t e epi emic
a ects a sma an increasing y margina ize popu ation in t e . . e
challenge for journalists covering HIV/AIDS is to nd new ways to keep their
audience engaged in a story that may not meet editorial standards for new
clearly as it once did.
Perhaps a more important trend is the decrease in the number of stories wit
a consumer education component in recent years. This nding is particularl
istur ing w en consi ering t e ac o now e ge a out transmission
cite a ove, an a so w en compare wit t e act t at t e num er o newcases iagnose in t e . . increase 2.2 percent in 2002 accor ing to
, t e rst increase since 1993, an new in ections in t e . . remain
40,000 annually. In addition, while the majority of new HIV infections in th
U.S. occur in people under the age of 25, only 1% of stories in the 2000-2002
time period focused on teenagers and young adults. Though AIDS is now
the leading cause of death among African Americans ages 25 to 44, and they
represent the majority of new HIV infections, only 2% of stories during this t
period focused on African Americans. These ndings raise the ever-present
question o t e appropriate ro e o journa ists, especia y in t e context o a
pu ic ea t epi emic: to w at extent o t e me ia ave a responsi i ity to
e ucate t e pu ic, as oppose to ocusing on y on reporting t e news
For those who would worry about AIDS fatigue, some encouragement can
be found; the data suggest that the news organizations have responded to
signicant changes in the HIV/AIDS epidemic, particularly since 2000. New
stories have emerged, including AIDS in Africa and worldwide eorts to gh
the global epidemic, as well as the emergence of HIV/AIDS as a business sto
an a po itica story. e ocus on t e g o a epi emic is particu ar y import
given its enormity an growing impact in many parts o t e wor . is cou
signa a re irt o t e story, wit a i erent ocus. owever, eeping som
ocus on t e omestic epi emic w i e te ing t ese an ot er new stories w
remain a challenge for journalists competing for limited news space.
Chart 8. Distribution of HIV/AIDS stories by
newspaper sect on over t me
10%
0%
0%
45%
- - - - -
5%
22% 22%
28%8%
2%
6%7%
13%
7%
8%
0%
9%
4%
4%
0%
7%
Percentofnewspaperstor
ies
2%
11%
Metro/Local/Regional
Business
age ne
Style/Life
Sports
National/International
Kaiser Family Foundation National Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS, conducted August 14-October 26, 2000.
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4Obituaries were excluded from the sample if AIDS was simply included as the cause of death, but were included if part of a larger news event (i.e. the death of a prominent HIV/AIDS activist). Unfortunately, this limits the abilit
this analysis to comment on whether it became more acceptable over time to list AIDS as the cause of death in obituaries.
Media sources were selected to present a meaningful assessment of content
presented by news outlets widely available to the public. Selections were
made on both a geographic and a demographic basis, as well as diversity of
ownership.
r nt sources
ources c osen: e ew or imes, e a treet ourna e as ingtonost, an o aywere se ecte to represent pu ications most i e y to e
circulated among policy makers and the public on a nationwide basis. The os
Angeles Times, The Miami Herald, and theSan Francisco Chroniclewere selected
to provide an examination of how coverage might or might not have diered
between and among distinct metropolitan areas that were particularly hard-hit
by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The London Timeswas selected to provide a contrast
etween . . news me ia an a non- . . pu ication. ote: un ess ot erwise
note , a n ings inc u e ere are ase on . . me ia sources on y.
uant cat on an amp ng: ssessment egan y quanti ying t e artic es
that appeared in each publication from January 1, 1981 through December
31, 2002. The LEXIS-NEXIS database was used to quantify coverage for all
publications except The Wall Street Journalfor which the Dow Jones DataBase
was utilized, and The Miami Heraldwhich was accessed via the DIALOG
database. Search language was designed to cast the widest net possible in
order to capture pertinent stories (search terms included not only AIDS and
, ut a so terms suc as aposis sarcoma, an com inations o gay or
omosexua wit cancer, sarcoma, virus, etc. in or er to capture stories
pu is e e ore t e terms an were wi e y use .
e ew or imes e as ington ostan e a treet ourna were
accessible via electronic database searches for the complete timeframe. The
San Francisco Chronicleis also included for the entire 1981-2002 study period,via a combination of NEXIS searches and the papers in-house archives. Other
papers were phased-in based on availability as follows: Miami Herald(1983);
e on on imes 1985 ; os nge es imes 1985 ; o ay 1989 .
n or er to reac t e project target t at 90% o a cases e rawn rom print
sources, a strati e samp ing p an was imp emente . ecause t e amount
of coverage was limited during earliest part of the studys timeframe, and the
number of searchable newspapers was limited, all stories available during that
period (1981-1984) were selected for full coding. During peak years of coverage
(1985-2000), sample was constructed by selecting every 7th story within each
newspaper. For the remaining years (2001-2002), story selection was returnedto total-universe levels, and all stories for all newspapers were selected.
creen ng an nc us on: ewspaper stories were rst screene or inc usion.
a se rops, etters to t e e itor, news igests, etc. were remove rom t e
samp e . ac case was t en examine to etermine w et er or not
topics and issues were prominently featured within the story. When necessary,
coders used the following rule to make those decisions: If 50% or more of the
article was direct reporting on HIV/AIDS topics, that story was included/fully
coded; or if 33% of the article plus the headline (not the sub headline) was
direct reporting on HIV/AIDS topic, that story was included/fully coded. The
resulting newspaper sample totaled 8,783 stories.
roa cast sources
uant cat on an amp ng: roa cast news stories rom or
ews onig t, vening ews, an ig t y ews were acquire romt e an er i t niversity e evision ews rc ives. o review a stories t a
appeared January 1, 1981 - December 31, 2002, the Vanderbilt Archives we
searched for all stories where the index monograph included the terms HIV
or AIDS. Supplemental searches were applied to the 1981-1984 database,
utilizing the following additional search terms: gay and cancer, gay and vir
homosexual and cancer, homosexual and virus, Karposi, pneumocystis
cytomega ovirus or ymp a enopat y . is resu te in a tota universe
o 2,522 stories. ecause networ news programs pro uce a re ative y sma
num er o stories as compare to t eir newspaper counterparts, a ig er
percentage o stories were se ecte or t e samp e. it an esta is e targ
of 10% of the projects total sample to be drawn from broadcast sources, all
stories available during the earliest part of the studys timeframe (1981-198
were selected. To construct the sample for the remaining years (1985-2002
every 3rd story was selected.
Screening and Inclusion: After viewing by senior sta, false hits were
e iminate using t e esta is e inc usion ru e. e resu ting networ new
samp e tota e 882 stories.
e g t ng an ata na ys s
Prior to data analysis, cases representing the 1985-2000 sample were weigh
in order to bring those years up to full value in the dataset. The analysis citethis report is based on the weighted dataset.
nterco er re a ty
nterco er re ia i ity measures t e extent to w ic co ers, operating
autonomous y, co e or c assi y t e same story in t e same way. nterco er
reliability tests were performed throughout this study, with senior sta acti
as the control coder; no signicant dierences were found to exist on a recu
basis. Selected stories were double-coded in their entirety, and overall
intercoder reliability exceeded 85% for all variables.
The Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-prot, private operating foundation
e icate to provi ing in ormation an ana ysis on ea t care issues to
po icyma ers, t e me ia, t e ea t care community, an t e genera pu ic.
e oun ation is not associate wit aiser ermanente or aiser n ustries.
Additional copies of this publication (#7023) as well as topline results (#702
and a full methodology report (#7026) are available on the Kaiser Family
Foundations website at www.k.org.