AIDS has certainly been subject to some extraordinary media distortions and deceit over the years. It’s usually the tabloid press (with special merit to Rupert Murdoch’s publications) that have produced the greatest amount of offensive rubbish. So it came as a bit of a shock for queer people and AIDS activists in Australia when they read the Sydney Morning Herald’s report of the 1985 Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade.

The Herald is generally regarded as Australia’s leading quality newspaper, yet it’s article of 25th February 1985 – AIDS victims watch as parade passes by – wouldn’t have been out of place in a Murdoch sleaze rag.

The author, Jacky Archer, made a number of extraordinary claims, none of which turned out to be true. One of these was an alleged quote by a police spokesperson that the parade was “bloody disgusting”. Another was that the parade came under ‘a beer-can attack by a group of skinheads.’ A third related to an AIDS education float which, she claimed, contained men “offering safe sex for sale.”

But her most distressing claim was that she had visited a hotel room where a number of people with AIDS were watching the parade. Archer quoted Damian Furlong, the director of Mardi Gras, as saying that the men felt “…a lot like freaks. We have here a roomful of Elephant Men”. This notion of people with AIDS as social outcasts was reinforced by her article’s headline – AIDS victims watch as parade passes by. In other words, these people were rejects for whom life had now passed by. It was offensive to both people with AIDS and the queer communities who were very much supporting them.

Activists responded immediately following the article’s publication. They wrote to the Editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, pointing out the inaccuracies in Archer’s report and seeking a retraction.

The Herald’s Response

The response from the Editor-in-Chief, Chris Anderson, indicated that he was as appalled as everyone else. On March 1st the paper published a 900-word retraction. This included a clear statement that Archer had never visited the hotel room nor spoken to anyone who had been there.

It went on to say:

“The Herald now believes that very little of this was true…The Herald has decided to set out these facts because it is such an exceptional case. Reporting of this kind has no place in our newspaper…

We regret any damage done to the reputation of Mr Furlong and the Mardi Gras committee. In this case our normal standards have lapsed. We have taken steps to ensure that such lapses do not recur.”

Archer left the newspaper.