Globalization and the Media

Alper, Barbara. ‘A.I.D.S.: We Need Research, Not Hysteria!’ June 1983. 

March 1, 2023

The process of globalization is when a business or other organization develops international influence or starts operating on an international scale. An example of globalization was the AIDS crisis. The AIDS epidemic began in the United States in the early 1980’s-1990’s. During this time period, there were a reported 100,777 deaths among people who acquired the disease. Since this became an epidemic, the media covered how it was not only a health problem, but one that also concerned sexuality, culture, religion, and more. Media coverage of HIV/AIDS helped shape the policy agenda, as well as spread the information globally. Initial events and trends talking about this disease mass contributed to the stigma and discrimination against those affected. In the media and film, movies began to portray a central gay male character who had the disease. This globally created a false image of what AIDS was and how people contracted it. Many celebrities and popular figures began to speak on the crisis such as Princess Diana and Magic Johnson. They both believed it could be transferred by both homosexual and heterosexual sex. In the 80’s and 90’s, there weren't resources available to aid in the ridding of this disease. Upon diagnosis, this was a death sentence. A newspaper in 1993 revealed that AIDS was the leading cause of death of men in their early 20’s. A similar news article was released a year later which showed that now it was also the leading cause of death among women of the same age group. The spreading of this information happened very quickly but captured the attention of many people around the world to the epidemic.