University of Lucerne analyzes over one million newspaper articles on the Corona pandemic
As part of a study, the University of Lucerne examined coverage by the Swiss print media during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the study, the researchers draw a generally positive conclusion and make recommendations.
Mass media have a central role in times of crisis. This was evident at Covid-19, when they were tasked with providing the public with the latest information and assessments of the current situation in an appropriate manner - based on the communication of the health authorities and also on their own research.
At present, possible indiscretions between politicians and media professionals are dominating the public debate. This calls into question the balance and independence of some of the media coverage. However, if all articles published in Swiss media on the Corona pandemic are considered, a different picture emerges.
Dr. Alexander Ort, a lecturer and researcher in health communication at the University of Lucerne, and co-author Tobias Rohrbach have published a comprehensive study on this topic in the "International Journal of Public Health" entitled "Covering the Crisis" performed.
The study is part of a research project funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation and led by Prof. Dr. Sara Rubinelli and Dr. Nicola Diviani, which aims to provide important insights for communication in future health crises.
To this end, the research team used an automated process to scrutinize all articles published in newspapers in German- and French-speaking Switzerland between the beginning of 2020 and mid-2021, i.e. during the "hot" phase of Corona. A total of 1,171,114 articles were analyzed, i.e. more than a thousand articles per day with a more or less significant connection to the pandemic.
Competent experts taken into account
This sheer volume of articles illustrates the challenges faced by media professionals in the face of the massive health crisis: on the one hand, it was necessary to satisfy the increased need for information, and on the other, not to neglect other relevant news and prevent information fatigue.
As the analysis shows, the Covid coverage took place in all departments: The journalists addressed the effects on all areas of society and accurately depicted the "multi-system character" of the crisis. Another finding is a "solid" correspondence between topics and actors: Media professionals quote experts in those specific fields in which they are competent. "In contrast to previous research in the U.S., there are few empirical grounds for criticism to accuse the [local] media of providing a platform for the wrong voices on the wrong issues," the study says.
With regard to the communication of health authorities, the researchers conclude that it should definitely be "clear and consistent" in times of crisis, as the media must also first develop strategies and routines to deal with the new situation. "If this can be done, health authorities and institutions can rely on the news media to disseminate relevant information in a balanced way."
Another key to successful communication is to provide the media with experts from various fields - in addition to epidemiologists and health experts, for example, from business or law - as respondents, so that they can be quoted in the appropriate contexts.
