Basketball greats Yao Ming and Magic Johnson have posted for a public service announcement to be televised in China and around the world in support of World AIDS Day.

The National Basketball Association and television partners in the United States, China and worldwide, will air a series of public service announcements in support of World AIDS Day, Wednesday, December 1, and throughout the NBA season,China Radio International reported.

The announcements featured Houston Rockets' Chinese center Yao Ming and Basketball Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson promoting HIV/AIDS awareness in China.

The TV announcement was first shown in China on October 14th when two NBA teams staged their China tour.

Yao Ming is a hero both in his native China and in the United States, where he is an All-Star center for the Houston Rockets. Magic Johnson, a former L.A. Lakers superstar, disclosed his own HIV-positive status in 1991 and has worked to raise AIDS awareness on a worldwide basis ever since.

The public service announcements are designed to help educate Chinese citizens about HIV/AIDS prevention and dispel common misconceptions about how the disease is transmitted. In the English and Chinese language ads, Yao and Magic play basketball together, embrace and share a meal -- each an important visual confirmation that HIV/AIDS is not transmitted casually. Viewers are encouraged to visit www.aids333.com, a Chinese-language AIDS information website.

Source: CRI