Arthur Ashe, his fight against AIDS made public against his wishes, says journalists should temper their zeal to tell a story without regard to the hurt it might cause.
"Are you going to be cold, hard, crass purveyors of the facts just for the sake of people's right to know or under the guise of freedom of the press, or are you going to show a little sensitivity about some things?" Ashe asked Tuesday."Temper your definition of the public's right to know or the newsworthiness of something with sensitivity. Because it is better that you police yourself than that we have to use other means to do that and there soon may be a need to do that." The former tennis star's lecture hushed his audience at the National Press Club.
"I am not easily rattled, as most friends would tell you about me, but I was very irritated and disappointed, more disappointed than irritated at being put in what amounted to a no-win situation," Ashe said.
"To protect what I thought and assumed was a right any American had to keep personal matters private, I would have had to lie," he said.
Ashe revealed his illness April 8 after someone tipped USA Today, and he was worried that the paper was about to publish the news.
"I ought not to have been put in that position," Ash said.