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.
What is Johnson taking that he is living so long?
Arthur Ashe was another celebrity who tested positive for HIV in 1988, following blood transfusions. Ashe kept his diagnosis quiet until the year before his death in 1993.