Abstract
In this essay, we engage with the call for Extraordinary Issue: Coronavirus, Crisis and Communication. Situated in the Philippines, we reflect on how COVID-19 has made visible the often-overlooked relationship between journalism and public health. In covering the pandemic, journalists struggle with the shrinking space for press freedom and limited access to information as they also grapple with threats to their physical and mental well-being. Digital media enable journalists to report even in quarantine, but new challenges such as the wide circulation of health mis-/disinformation and private information emerge. Moreover, journalists have to contend with broader structural contexts of shutdown not just of a mainstream broadcast but also of community newspapers serving as critical sources of pandemic-related information. Overall, we hope this essay broadens the dialogue among journalists, policymakers, and healthcare professionals to improve the delivery of public health services and advance health reporting.
Highlights
IntroductionThe public health system in the Philippines was unprepared for and overburdened by COVID-19
In this essay, we reflect on how COVID-19 has brought to our attention the often-overlooked relationship between journalism and public health
The first case was reported on January 30 when a Chinese woman reached the country from Wuhan, China, and a few days later her male companion died of the virus – making it the first recorded death outside of China (Department of Health (DOH), 2020b; Ramzy and May, 2020; World Health Organization (WHO), 2020a)
Summary
The public health system in the Philippines was unprepared for and overburdened by COVID-19. There are 112,593 confirmed cases, 6,263 new cases, and 2,115 deaths in the country (WHO, 2020b) – making the Philippines as one of the most highly impacted in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific Region. The relationship between journalism and public health has mostly been explained based on journalistic roles and news framing. News framing has likewise informed the conversations between journalism and public health. We hope to engage with ongoing discussion about journalism and public health by reflecting on how health reporting during COVID-19 in the Philippines relates to broader, emergent, and interconnected issues of journalistic practices, technological changes, and structural constraints in the country
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