Harnessing the heightened public awareness of celebrity HIV disclosures: "Magic" and "Cookie" Johnson and HIV testing

Abstract

This article investigates the impact NBA basketball star Earvin ("Magic") Johnson's HIV disclosure had on changes in demand for HIV counseling and testing services in New York State's 61 Anonymous HIV Counseling and Testing sites. Interrupted time-series analyses were conducted on weekly data from over 34,000 clients seeking anonymous HIV counseling and testing services from January 1991 to June 1992, to determine whether demand for these services changed as a result of the disclosure. Results indicated that immediately following the HIV disclosure, there was a substantial increase in service demand, which transcended all sex, race, age, and most HIV risk-related boundaries. Seven months later, demand had not returned to pre-disclosure levels. The strong impact on females, coupled with additional data analyses in obstetrical settings, suggests that previous research has been too narrow in focus, and that the effect of Johnson's HIV disclosure has been enhanced, in part, by the publicity surrounding his wife and baby. The importance of harnessing the heightened public awareness of celebrity HIV disclosures is discussed.