Arthur Ashe had kept his illness secret for four years until an unknown person told USA Today that Ashe was infected with AIDS. Doug Smith, a friend of Ashe who worked for the sports section of the paper was asked to follow up on that lead. Smith, troubled, told Ashe about his dilemma. Ashe was infuriated by this and immediately phoned managing sports editor Gene Policinski. A

Ashe should not have been pressured to come out to the public about having the AIDS virus, especially since he had remained out of the spotlight for over a decade. But even if he had been in the public eye at that time, what USA Today did to him is inexcusable. It is common knowledge that people lose their privacy when they become public figures, but that does not make it right. Privacy is not only a privilege; it's a Constitutional right. No one should have to give up that right just for being famous.

However, I strongly feel that Ashe's illness was nobody's business and that there was no legitimate reason for anyone to know about it other than his close friends and relatives. I think USA Today put Ashe in a really uncomfortable position because they forced him to choo

Some common words found in the essay are:
USA Ashe, Policinski Ashe, , Doug Smith, Arthur Ashe, public figures, usa ashe, lives public, aids virus, arthur ashe,
Approximate Word count = 523
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)