Angelina Jolie’s faulty gene: newspaper coverage of a celebrity’s preventive bilateral mastectomy in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom

Genetics in Medicine

(2013)

doi:10.1038/gim.2013.199

Received: 24 September 2013
Accepted: 21 November 2013
Published online: 19 December 2013

Abstract

Purpose:

This study investigates the portrayal of Angelina Jolie’s preventive bilateral mastectomy in the news media. Content analysis of print news was conducted to identify major frames used in press coverage, the overall tone of discussions, how journalists report broader questions about BRCA1/2testing and hereditary breast/ovarian cancer, and whether they raise concerns about the impact of celebrities on patients’ choices and public opinion.

Methods:

The Factiva database was used to collect publications on Jolie’s preventive mastectomy in elite newspapers in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The data set consisted of 103 newspaper articles published in the first month of media coverage.

Results:

The results show that although the press discussed key issues surrounding predictive genetic testing and preventive options for women at high risk of hereditary breast/ovarian cancer, important medical information about the rarity of Jolie’s condition was not communicated to the public.

Conclusion:

The results highlight the media’s overwhelmingly positive slant toward Jolie’s mastectomy, while overlooking the relative rarity of her situation, the challenges of “celebrity medicine,” and how celebrities influence people’s medical decisions. Future research is required to investigate whether the media hype has influenced demand and use of BRCA1/2 testing and preventive mastectomies.

Genet Med advance online publication 19 December 2013