I’m going to make an assumption that most people heard the news that Gareth Thomas (former Wales and British Lions captain) had announced that he’s HIV positive.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-wales-49702585/rugby-s-gareth-thomas-on-hiv-i-want-to-break-the-stigma

But have I missed the follow-up on today’s news, that he broke the story because a tabloid journalist had spoken to his parents about it before he’d told them of the diagnosis, and that he wouldn’t have spoken out if they had not threatened to break the story themselves?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-49739345

What hellish depth in the name of all that’s holy has our media sunk to? I know they have a fierce history of lowering expectations, but how fricking low is that? How can press freedom be maintained in light of such flagrant abuses (including the Stokes story) of power? We’ve had the hacking, we’ve had the Sun’s Hillsborough disgrace – I’m not against press freedom, but I am against abuse of that freedom, I’m against that freedom being wielded without any accountability or seemingly a sense of responsibility.

That’s low. The journalist better watch his back, hissing someone the size of Gareth off is not a good idea.

HIV isn’t the death sentence like it was (quite treatable now I believe), so why the hell does it matter. Low life media scum.

I’d be empted to let it be known who did this, if I was Gareth.

It was discussed on the rugby thread a bit, **** awful behaviour by some utter ****. The Ben Stokes stuff from the Sun is of a similar nature too.

I’d be empted to let it be known who did this, if I was Gareth.

Yep

I respect that he may not want to, but I rather hope he does – I’d love to know who to express an opinion to.

I’d like to think that this and the Ben Stokes story in the Sun yesterday might result in some sort of common sense public interest test being applied by the press. But I suspect the clicks will be worth more than the integrity.

Missed the T off my ’empted’…

There is nothing better than responding to ‘bullies’ by getting your “revenge” legally and honestly. Easily done on a TV interview.

I met him recently and he is a thoroughly decent, humble and lovely chap. While the Stokes thing to me is different as it is a matter of public note anyway and has been since 1988 Gareth’s breach of confidentiality is unacceptable. He’s a bit of a hero to me in many ways. But I mean really we live in a country where the masses believe the histrionics and filth published by the Mail, Express and Sun pervade and pollute minds. I’ll stop now. Scum.

But I suspect the clicks will be worth more than the integrity.

I suspect Boris can’t throw his own dead cats on the table fast enough

There is nothing better than responding to ‘bullies’ by getting your “revenge” legally and honestly. Easily done on a TV interview.

Which gives the story more legs and generates more clicks for the offending papers.

Offensive stories go viral and we all decide we want to click on/share. That means a story about Gareth Thomas being HIV+ gets shared on STW etc and goes viral while a quality serious story gets read by the people who read the paper, and them alone. We shouldn’t blame the papers, we should blame ourselves. (…and I include myself – I never share shite journalism but when someone shares the latest outrage from the media I often can’t help but go to read the story in one source or another.)

Not that I’m being defensive, but… 🙂 I heard the original story on t’radio, I only linked it here for reference, the key thing is that the original story would not have broken if journalists hadn’t threatened to break it irrespective of his wishes. That ain’t right, man.

Really good interview with him this morning on 5 live link and it brought a tear to my eye when he was talking about his parents.

He also mentions that his HIV is not transmittable which was news to me as I assumed everyone who has HIV could pass it on, but apparently not link

Watch BBC1 at 10:35 tonight for his story.

the key thing is that the original story would not have broken if journalists hadn’t threatened to break it irrespective of his wishes. That ain’t right, man.

It’s not right, it’s disgusting. I was so angry about it I clicked on the BBC story and read it. That’s the problem.

I’m not having a go at you personally Pondo, we all do it, that’s why it works so well and that’s why they do it.

No sweat, dude – you’ve made me realise that I do, too. 🙁

Watch BBC1 at 10:35 tonight for his story.

Hang on, I smell a rat. Have they made a 60 minute documentary and scheduled it in 3/4 days?

If he hasn’t got the money to take on a tabloid in the courts, I will happily donate if he sets up a crowd funder.
it is beyond low what the journalist did

Has he said when he first became infected ?

Is that relevant to anything? I’m just thinking that you probably don’t hear a fanfare.

No and why should he, and would he know anyway? Testing positive in a routine blood test may be totally removed from any past infection event.

I develop new HIV drugs for my day job. Some of his comments about treatment and pills being a daily reminder were eye opening for me. I’m looking at monthly and possibly longer acting therapies.

It’s time we took direct action against this type of journalism.

Our country is becoming a very unpleasant place.

A rent a quite from the “society of newspaper editors” was on bbc explaining how a free press was the jewel in the crown of any society. Utter dick.

Not at all surprised The S*n stooped so low. Again. ****ts.
Must be desperate for readers.

I develop new HIV drugs for my day job. Some of his comments about treatment and pills being a daily reminder were eye opening for me. I’m looking at monthly and possibly longer acting therapies.

It does frustrate me that they keep saying it’s fine you can lead a normal life, taking a pill every morning because you’ve caught a disease isn’t ideal. We shouldn’t pretend medicine can solve everything. His mental health alone has taken a hell of a beating.

How on earth do the press get hold of this information, going to his dad who as he said deserves a private life. He’s been forced to make this tv show. Surely someone’s medical information is nobodies business however they’ve found out. Really felt sorry for him last night.

On a brighter note the rugby World Cup starts soon, hopefully we’ll see him back on form on our screens.

Time for leading sports celebrities to stop talking to/working with The Sun. It’s a shame that Sky isn’t owned by News International any more, as they could stop giving post-match interviews to that lot as well.

The press are pretty disgusting but so are the actions of some celebs and their agents. The press use the stories on their way up and down but on the way down only the press ‘win’.
This is a nasty piece of ‘journalism’.

He’s been forced to make this tv show.

I’m not so sure. The press outed him at the weekend. 3 days later there’s a 60 minute documentary? Seems quite tight time scales. I’m wondering if GT was going public this week anyway and the press heard about it because of that.

If you want something kept secret, don’t make a documentary about it.

For me it comes down to which came first, the making and scheduling of the documentary or the press outing. Anyone know?

Obviously making the documentary took time, but he’d suppressed the story legally since last year. He took the decision to go public to end the legal tussle and iron man Wales was his chosen date.

There are rules regarding press embargo and release of information, perhaps you weren’t aware of how that works. But this is an obvious example.

Imagine how much of a **** you have to be to tell someone’s parents that their son is HIV positive just so you can try and advance your pathetic career.

Do you think they feel any guilt at all? Who would want to be friends with that type of person? Who would want to be married to that type of person? They are beyond scum.

Obviously making the documentary took time, but he’d suppressed the story legally since last year. He took the decision to go public to end the legal tussle and iron man Wales was his chosen date.

So all you had to do was check the TV schedules and see “Gareth Thomas: HIV and Me”? If the name of the TV show is out in the public domain, then how have the papers really done anything wrong?

The only paper which did something wrong is The Sun, which approached his parents long before the documentary was made and broke the news of his HIV+ status. Which is a disgraceful breach of privacy, obviously.

I imagine that GT made various interviews on the issue available to the rest of the press under embargo before the documentary was listed for broadcast. They collectively decided to honour that, which, given the circumstances, was the only thing they could do.

Do you think they feel any guilt at all?

The film ‘Nightcrawler’ gives some insight into the personality type that actually enjoys doing this kind of thing.

So all you had to do was check the TV schedules and see “Gareth Thomas: HIV and Me”? If the name of the TV show is out in the public domain, then how have the papers really done anything wrong?

I only half watched it but I think they introduced it as a “schedule change” so presume something else was listed as a placeholder.

It does frustrate me that they keep saying it’s fine you can lead a normal life, taking a pill every morning because you’ve caught a disease isn’t ideal. We shouldn’t pretend medicine can solve everything. His mental health alone has taken a hell of a beating.

I think he covered quite well how the medication did allow him to physically lead a normal life, but discussed his mental health and how taking the medication reminded him every day.

only half watched it but I think they introduced it as a “schedule change” so presume something else was listed as a placeholder.

Which means it was due out in another couple of weeks but we brought it forward for more viewers while the “outrage” was fresh in the mind

For clarity, it’s quite clear in the documentary that it was all part of a carefully orchestrated plan to release the news in time with the Ironman event, but the announcement had to be hastily brought fwd due to the Sun’s activity.

The guy is a bloody inspiration, and has gone from a glittering rugby career to literally changing many people’s lives for the better, in many ways.

The word hero is vastly overused these days, but applies here, I think.

The Sun, on the other hand, is a despicable instrument, who’s greatest acheivement seems to be (mostly) covering the boobs up on page 3, and calling it “progress”…

Which means it was due out in another couple of weeks but we brought it forward for more viewers while the “outrage” was fresh in the mind

And if the media hadn’t threatened to break the story in the first place, GT wouldn’t have gone public at all.

And if the media hadn’t threatened to break the story in the first place, GT wouldn’t have gone public at all.

That makes no sense at all. You don’t make a TV documentary just in case..

Gareth Thomas always finds something newsworthy when there’s a big rugby tournament about to start and he has a documentary to promote.

No and why should he? What parts of your medical history would you care to share on STW and beyond? The point being YOU care to share rather than have sensationalised for public titivation in the “public interest”.

I was particularly taken by the close up of the photo of him, his parents and husband together. Looked to me like he has strong healthy relationships. But giving the hiv news to his parents was beyond the pale. Just despicable. As he said, they took away his one opportunity to have that conversation. And that wasn’t recent btw, that was some time ago, when the injunction was served.

Sorry, didn’t mean to suggest it. *Rereads posts and can’t see where he suggested it*

And that wasn’t recent btw, that was some time ago, when the injunction was served.

Linky? I can’t find anything about an injunction over the HIV issue. As far as I can find the HIV issue came out this this weekend at exactly the right time to promote a documentary that had already been made and during the RWC when a raised media profile will mean £££s to him.

If he was forced to make a Documentary by a third party it’s a hell of a coincidence that it is released at the perfect moment for him.

Which still paints the media in a terrible light but it’s a different story to the one I’ve been reading.