Hiv come out in 81 or 82? I was only 4-5 years old then. Did the media panic then?
It started out rather muted, and sounded sort of tinfoilish. It was called GRID originally, Gay Related Immune Disorder. Nobody really knew what it was at first, whether it was some sort of cancer, a combination of venereal diseases, a lifestyle issue pertaining to substance abuse or what, so there was some generalized concern, that morphed into near panic among regular folks, worrying about getting it from toilet seats or from a drinking glass, that sort of thing. The main fear was getting it from a blood transfusion, and politics stepped in, dragging out the exclusion of high-risk populations from donation, and screening supply for the virus. The full-blown panic in the US was and is among that high-risk population, mostly gay men and drug users who are infected by sharing dirty needles. Other parts of the world, primarily Africa, are being hit hard by the disease, which is transmitted via heterosexual intercourse. Why the difference? Seems to be related to circumcision of males, but that’s still up in the air, as far as I know. The US, Israel and certain Arab countries are the only ones practicing widespread male circumcision, so that notion appears a little suspect. Back to behavioral excesses, imho.
Not really. It wasn't until several years later when groups like ACTUP and other gay activists started to sound the alarm because AIDS was beginning to ravage the gay community. Then, the the "aids epidemic" as it became to be known really turned into a nightly story. Remember, when AIDS first came on the scene, CNN was in it's infancy and the predominance of the 24 hour news cycle was yet in place.
It wasn't until the late 80's that the scope of HIV really was appreciated. And, I don't believe it was until Magic Johnson's infection did most people believe that it wasn't a disease that was confined to only the gay male population.
IIRC, I first heard of HIV in late 78 or early 79.