Journalistic Denial of Death during the Very First Traumatic Period of the Italian COVID-19 Pandemic.

Sheldon Solomon,Fiorella Calabrese,Ines Testoni,Guido Biasco,Daniele Rostellato

doi:10.3390/bs11030041

Abstract

Exactly one year ago, between February and March 2020, the COVID-19 infection went from an epidemic confined to China to a worldwide pandemic that was particularly lethal in Italy. This study examined the media accounts during that period by analysing the representation of death-related constructs in Corriere della Sera, the most widely read newspaper in Italy. A textual and thematic analysis of articles published between period A (epidemic: 23 January–22 February 2020) and period B (pandemic: 23 February–31 March 2020) was conducted using Nvivo-11. A total of 141 articles comprising 48,524 words were collected. The most utilised words and meanings linked to COVID-19 were computed. In the rank distribution, ‘China’ and ’virus’ were the terms most frequently used in both periods. The terms ‘death’ and ‘dead’ were completely absent in period A and appeared in the 535th position in period B. The term ‘dead’ was used primarily to indicate the number of deceased. From a Terror Management Theory perspective, it is possible that the minimal reference to death-related issues was a reflection of death denial and a manifestation of efforts to deny death to manage terror. These findings highlight the ambiguities and ambivalence surrounding any issue pertaining to death; on the one side, undue alarmism may provoke exaggerated reactions, such as moral panic, while on the other denial-based messages that minimise references to mortality may reduce safe behaviour during a pandemic.

Highlights

Recent literature has emphasised how the global health system has developed sophisticated strategies to fight against infectious disease risks through formal and informal networks of organisations operating across the public, private for-profit and private notfor-profit sectors
Studies on the ways in which the media have handled the COVID-19 pandemic have already accounted for some important aspects, including the biases that characterise mass information [45] (AlAfnan, 2020), among which stigma and incitement to hatred emerge in importance [46] (Robie, Krishnamurthi, 2020), but have underlined the ability to give scientifically correct information [47] (Anderson et al, 2021)
Our study considers a topic that has never been addressed in either COVID-19 or previous pandemic-related analyses

Summary

Introduction

Recent literature has emphasised how the global health system has developed sophisticated strategies to fight against infectious disease risks through formal and informal networks of organisations operating across the public, private for-profit and private notfor-profit sectors. In a pandemic outbreak of infection, without vaccines and safe therapies only behavioural strategies can prevent the infection from spreading. In this case, journalistic information might play an important role [4,5] in influencing people’s behaviour [6,7,8]. Scholars have shown that information on health and specific threats have an impact on human groups’ capability to prevent diseases. The mass media acts as social amplification stations with respect to the perception of risk [11], and efficacious communication can help people adopt appropriate behaviours to stop the spread of the infection [12]. Some studies have shown how the fear aroused by exposure to information about MERS and influenza A H1N1 was positively correlated with increased risk perception and self-relevant behaviour [13,14,15]

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