Efficacy information in Government's initial responses to Covid-19 pandemic: A content analysis of the media coverage in Indonesia

Abstract

Inevitable uncertainty conditions during the Covid-19 crisis resulted in an extension of the inadequate information and knowledge shared about the pandemic. The media plays a significant role in reporting and communicating risks related to the global Covid-19 outbreak. People can respond well to the risk of coronavirus if they understand the impact of the pandemic through efficacy information about the pandemic. However, a previous study revealed that media organizations lack quick action and response to Covid-19. Furthermore, no study was found to understand how media provides efficacy information on the government's early response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The study aims to examine and analyze the external efficacy information of the government's initial responses during the early stage of the outbreak in four national online newspapers (Kompas.com, Tempo.co, Republika.co.id, Tirto.id). The articles were classified based on themes derived from the keywords search—effect/impact, response/action, policy/restriction on the Covid-19 pandemic, and assessed the pandemic's most prominent external efficacy information within the local, national, and global context in each article in the four media. From 704 articles analyzed, our study revealed dominant-negative tones on the impact of the pandemic, including inconsistent actions and policies taken to prevent the transmission of the virus. Our study suggests that increasing positive efficacy information and improving media engagement are vital communication goals to better educate the public about the coronavirus and minimize uncertainty during the pandemic.