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THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

The Role of Media during Pandemic Threats:


Analyzing the Diffusion of Information in Public Health Crises
Jan Oliver A. Viyar
Global Studies and World Languages Academy
Tallwood High School

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

ABSTRACT
Media plays a vital role in influencing the perceptions of pandemics that the general
public adopts, but the impact that results from this role can be either beneficial or detrimental to
the well-being of a community. Information can be disseminated rapidly through a community
through the vehicle of mass media therefore the producers of said media must diffuse
information responsibly and in the appropriate frames. The effectiveness of a message conveyed
by the media is highly dependent on the frame employed by the media and the volume of
coverage of a particular event. Inappropriate spin and amounts of media coverage could possibly
result in misplaced anxiety that can produce irrational behavioral responses within the
population, but the population may also practice complacency and be reluctant to respond to the
pandemic event. Contrarily, when media is produced responsibly, people will generate a fitting
response for the severity of a pandemic threat. Through an interview with the Public Information
Officer of the Eastern region Virginia Department of Health, it was found that on the local level,
the effect of media on a population is not lessened by the smaller pool of media consumers;
instead, patterns displayed on a larger level are paralleled by those at the local level. Ultimately,
media should attempt to correlate the frame and volume of coverage with the true severity of the
public health threat because people will respond appropriately. Although the producers of media
have the power to influence the perceptions of the general public, it is the duty of the consumer
of such media to analyze the information diffused to them with efficacy.

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents

Introduction

Limitations

Methodology

Literature Review

Discussion

10

Factors Influencing the Impact of Media on Communities

10

Community Responses to Pandemic Media

13

Expanding Role of Social Media in Pandemics

16

Ensuring Positive Responses to Pandemic Media

17

Conclusion

18

References

20

Appendix A

22

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

The Role of Media during Pandemic Threats:


Analyzing the Diffusion of Information in Public Health Crises
INTRODUCTION
International communities have had to grapple with the emergence of pandemic threats
ranging from avian influenza to the Ebola virus; this constant conflict oftentimes garners an
attentive audience within the general public because of humanitys instinctual drive towards
survival in spite of various threats. Infectious diseases have become especially harmful to
society as a result of the industrial revolution and the subsequent growth of human populations
around the world; however, innovations in technology and medicine have attempted to offset and
mitigate the negative consequences of a growing population. The spread of disease can occur
rapidly within communities because of the constant contact people have with one another serving
as an agent for the transmission of disease, but in many cases, the spread of information can
occur equally fast or even faster than the spread of the actual disease as a result of the
persistently connected nature of our society.
The public has generally held a justified anxiety for pandemics and infectious diseases
because they are forced to contend with an invisible assailant. Consequently, people attempt to
form a more tangible view of this threat through the compilation of knowledge and information
that can lend them a sense of security during a time of public health crisis. The role of media,
subsequently, is to serve as the diffuser of such information and frame various issues of public
interest in a way that arouses attention which may come in the form of self-efficacy or quite
possibly, induced panic. However, the effectiveness of media is highly dependent on how the
public perceives the information disseminated to them. Societies have access to seemingly
infinite sources of information through various forms of media; this can prove to be both a

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panacea and a bane to how the threat of infectious disease is handled by both the authorities and
the general public.
LIMITATIONS
The study of the medias influence on pandemic events is highly relevant because of
current news events regarding Ebola and past outbreaks of H1N1, SARS, and other pandemic
disease. Despite its present relevance, there are limitations that can result in the presence of bias
in research.
Narrowed source subject matter. The research conducted will be limited to primarily
psychology studies related to recent pandemics such as H1N1 and SARS. Although this research
question is being posed as a response to the recent outbreak of Ebola originating in West Africa,
the research will not express particular emphasis on the pandemic because, as a relatively new
development in global issues, studies have not been published exploring the psychological
impacts of the illness. Instead, studies discussing past pandemics will be used in application in
order to relate research to current events; therefore, the study may be limited to speculative
analysis of the Ebola outbreak based on information gathered from these past pandemics.
The majority of sources utilized to discuss the psychological impacts and the resulting
behavioral changes due to pandemics originate from surveys conducted by reputable
psychologists. Experimental means of studying the possible causal link between the occurrences
of pandemics and subsequent effects on ones psyche are not relevant to the current research
because of ethical limitations stemming from placing individuals under duress of infectious
disease.
Survey biases and inaccuracies. Because surveys are the primary source of research,
there are several occurrences that can devalue the information gathered; various biases can exist

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

as a result of survey methods. The studies seem to have implemented proper, accurate sampling
methods including the use of systematic sampling methods; however, the reliance on qualitative
responses may lead to response bias that could report inaccurate representations of the selected
samples. Despite possible fallacies in research, the studies can be taken at face value because the
information does come from credible sources.
Time and geographical constraints. The issue of pandemics is currently a highly
relevant topic, but its relevance in society is time sensitive as measures to control the Ebola
outbreak are being implemented. Subsequently, if original surveys were implemented as the
issue loses prominence and is contained, respondents answers may be degraded by the passing
of time. Although the current pandemic of Ebola has crossed American borders, the threat does
not contain particular relevance in the Hampton Roads area therefore limiting the scope of my
topic.
METHODOLOGY
The impact of media and its communication with the public during times of pandemics
has been researched extensively and in-depth by the psychological, public health, and medical
communities. With the rise in infectious diseases due to the industrialization of society, it has
become increasingly important to understand how communities respond both on a conscious and
subconscious level. The research from these comes primarily in the form of surveys providing
quantitative evidence and the use of focus groups and interviews providing qualitative
information conducted on relatively large sample sizes representing general populations because
infectious diseases function indiscriminately. These sources were gathered at the Tidewater
Community College Joint-Use Library using databases such as PubMed and PyschInfo that
offered reputable and credible studies from experts in this field of study. The databases accessed

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

provided a wide range of sources primarily dealing with H1N1 and SARS, but studied from
various communities around the world therefore this research represents the global scale of the
issue.
The issue of media coverage of Ebola and related pandemics should be of importance to
local health officials, so interviews conducted with officials at the local health department and
health organizations can provide locally relevant information. These interviews can offer
valuable insight into how media affects the role of the government in ensuring the proper
distribution of actionable information to the public they serve and protect. In order to further
support the issue on a more global scale, an interview with an expert in the effects of media
during times of pandemics can broaden the scale of research while also remaining the scope of
the field being discussed in this paper.
LITERATURE REVIEW
According to McCauley in The H1N1 pandemic, media frames, stigmatization and
coping, news media regarding H1N1 during the initial outbreak propagated stereotypes in
relation to the disease of Hispanic populations that eventually led to the stigmatization of
Hispanics. Stereotypes, McCauley notes, are generally used as a means of creating associations;
this led to the false connection between H1N1 and Hispanics. Respondents in the study from
both white and Hispanic populations generally agreed that they were emotionally aroused by
H1N1 news, but the implemented sample size was relatively small which could result in
variability among respondents from the given populations.
Gonzalez-Medina, et. al. further asserts that there was a general stigmatization towards
Hispanics, particularly Mexicans, as a result of initial news coverage of the H1N1 pandemic
originating in Mexico. The media coverage of the pandemic was pervasive which led to self-

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reinforcement of continual reports in regards to the disease. The alarmist framework


characteristic of various media sources at the time laid the foundation for fear in the masses. The
journal article emphasizes the importance of consuming and producing media responsibly.
Similarly, during the SARS outbreak originated in China, according to Smith in
Responding to global infectious disease outbreaks: lessons from SARS on the role of risk
perception, communication and management, the Chinese people were stigmatized due to their
poor handling of the outbreak. One UK study referenced by Smith reflects this stigmatization by
referring to the Chinese people as different as a means of saying that the UK is infallible to
such an outbreak.
In The relationships of information efficacy and media literacy skills to knowledge and
self-efficacy for health-related decision making by Weintraub, et. al., the responsible
consumption of information is analyzed. The study asserts that those who could effectively and
accurately analyze sources of information, especially through media outlets, were more likely to
possess self-efficacy; they were associated with levels of health productive behaviors. During
times of public health crises, it is a generally held belief that one must be able to access
information, especially from local sources, easily and reliably according to Weintraub, et. al.
because the lack of information from credible media sources could lead to irrational behavior.
Media can contribute of hype within the general public according to Vasterman, et. al. in
The Role of the Media and Media Hypes in the Aftermath of Disasters as a result of the how
media frames pandemic threats when diffusion information to the public. The manner in which
pandemics and public health crises are framed in the media often results in the social
amplification of risk people may perceive relatively low-risk threats to be disproportionately
dangerous especially in relation to possibly more dangerous threats. Such has been the case for

THE ROLE OF MEDIA DURING PANDEMIC THREATS

Ebola, which for several months was the center of media coverage. Framing can prove an
important asset of media when discusses issues of public importance because media can place a
spin on an issue that greatly influences how people respond. Ultimately, media can contribute to
misplaced fear.
The prevalence of social media has grown greatly in the past decade. Subsequently,
Davis, et. al. in We Became Sceptics: Fear and Media Hype in General Public Narrative on
the Advent of Pandemic Influenza, assert that individual messages directly from the general
public can quickly become part of the collective perception of pandemic threats. This can result
in the development of fear and anxiety felt by a community as a whole. Official media outlets
oftentimes incorporate social media messages that can show the views of an individual, but as a
result of its diffusion, an individual sentiment can become the views of many.
According to Hilton and Smith in Public views of the UK media and government
reaction the 2009 swine flu pandemic, the portrayal of swine flu by the UK media and
government was ultimately disproportionate to the actual severity of the pandemic as perceived
by the people. People, as a result, did not consciously recognize the recommended precautionary
behaviors as suggested by the government. The primary source of information during the
pandemic was the media which, in line with the agenda-setting practices of media, emphasized
the relatively high levels of swine flu; however, respondents suggested that the media was
intentionally causing worry within the population which resulted in an expressed skepticism.
Sherlaw and Raude have also recognized the lack of public response to the emergence of
infectious disease, specifically with the 2009 outbreak of H1N1. The publics preconceived
perceptions of the severity of swine flu did not coincide with the reality that they faced because
the media presented the pandemic with an alarmist view. When the pandemic failed to meet the

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expectations and the severity the public had believed it would reach, public response failed to
address the threat effectively. Sherlaw and Raude assert that there must be realistic
representations of public threat in order to provide for efficacy in behavior in order to prevent
future alarmist framework and to promote efficacy in public health.
According to Collinson and Heffernan in Modelling the effects of media during an
influenza epidemic, media can prove to be an incredibly beneficial tool in the forming of public
policy when analyzed appropriately. The transmission of media information through electronic
means can be used to relay vital information regarding the measurements of pandemic diseases
such as peaks, the total number of infections, and other relevant pieces of information. Mass
media can influence ones behavior, but the degree to which one alters his or her behavior
eventually diminishes over time as media volume decreases.
DISCUSSION
Media has greatly impacted the transpiring of several pandemic events, especially with the
advent of effective modes of information communication such as television and internet.
Through media, the public is equipped to collect information that can influence the perceptions
they adopt in regards to public health crises, but the way in which mass media can portray such
events, in some cases, cannot be separated from the objective information necessary to
effectively evaluate the threat of infectious disease. Consequently, media plays an important role
in shaping the publics perception into an appropriate response; however, this can vary in how
successful the product of mass media truly is.
Factors influencing the impact of media on communities. The extent to which individuals
actually respond in a productive manner to the threat of infectious diseases depends heavily on
two key factors: the framing of a public health issue and the volume of coverage. The spin that

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media outlets use when conveying information surrounding a pandemic threat and the amount of
coverage it actually receives are determinant in predicting the level at which the public respond.
These factors have impacted how the public has changed its behavior in order to mitigate the
effects of a pandemic crisis evidenced by several recent worldwide pandemics such as SARS and
H1N1.
Media framework can prove to be both productive and detrimental to influencing a public
response in light of a public health crisis; such is often the case on an individual to individual
basis within any particular pandemic. Through frame-setting, the news media actively develop
the frames of reference that readers or viewers use to understand public events (McCauley , et.
al., 2013) . In many global publications outside the US and Japan that covered the H1N1
pandemic, framing of the issue ranged from scientific, information based to sensationalized,
speculative ("The H1N1 Pandemic - An Analysis of Global Media Coverage," n.d.); the public
has generally criticized sensationalism because of the unnecessary panic induced by such
publications. An alarmist framework has become prevalent in news coverage because the media
has increasingly focused on issues that are dramatic rather than those that are genuinely high-risk
(Young, Norman, & Humphreys, 2008). Through the effective framing of an issue, media
sources serve to provide suggestions and recommendations in how the public should cognitively
and, subsequently, behaviorally respond to the threat of communicable disease. The response
induced by current media, however, can prove to be grossly irrational because of the way in
which issues are framed. Presenting an issue in a responsible light is important in the effective
consumption of media because media should serve to guard the floodgates of fear and panic.
Sensationalized framing of a public health issue can lead to the social amplification of risk in
which the threats faced by a community are perceived as a higher-risk than they actually present

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in relation to the severity of other risks. According to Vasterman, [m]edia belong to the most
important stations of amplification by selecting and framing risk messages and transmitting
them to the public (2005) therefore the way in which they portray an issue is often echoed and
augmented by the public that consumes the information.
The volume of coverage is correlated with the level at which the public will respond to a
pandemic and alter normal routines in order to mitigate the harm caused by infectious disease;
oftentimes the peaks of coverage are associated with trigger events of the diseases timeline such
as the death of prominent authorities in the containment or reporting of the disease (Kwok,
2013). The way in which media reports parallel the progression of a disease can prove alarming
to populations and induce a behavioral change as a means of ensuring safety during times in
which ones security is uncertain.
When the coverage is repetitive, it is self-reinforcing and gains traction as a newsworthy
event that eventually occupies the thoughts of the general public for an extended period of time
contributing to the media hype of a pandemic or similar public health event (Vasterman, et. al.,
2005). While quality of coverage may be lacking, the quantity of coverage is not (P. D. Hart
Research Associates, 2006), so it is common for events that the media deems newsworthy, such
as the outbreak of a deadly disease, to overwhelm the general public and subsequently induce
anxiety. According to Young, et. al. (2008), individuals consider infectious diseases that receive
repetitive media exposure to be more severe and have higher disease-like status than diseases of
comparable objective severity that receive less media attention. A higher amount of exposure to
media reports regarding a particular disease augments the public reaction, sometimes to an
extreme, which should be avoided. Although many news sources in communities facing

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pandemic outbreaks may provide fair, balanced coverage, there is an equal volume of extreme
coverage that offsets
Community responses to pandemic media. People respond more readily to external messages
rather than internal cues to action when confronted with pandemic threat (Miller, et. al., 2011)
therefore media proves to be an integral tool in the efficacy in a public response to public health
crises. The general public views media as a primary source of information, so it is highly
influential in how a pandemic is assessed. Media producers must diffuse information in a
responsible way in order to ensure an appropriate public response, but the variety of frames used
when providing information to the public has resulted in a range of responses, both positive and
negative. Davis, et. al. (2014) note the myriad of reactions that result from the transmission of
messages through media:
Messages regarding pandemic influenza are circulated in the news, by governments and
through popular culture, as noted. But these messages can be attended to yet ignored,
absorbed and put into action, appropriated to justify intended action, reframed according
to the beliefs or needs of the media consumer, or actively resisted and contradicted. (p.
499)
An alarmist framework has characterized several sources of H1N1 coverage. As a result of such
framing, people are likely to become fearful of a pandemic threat which is correlated with an
increased willingness to adopt preventative and avoidance behaviors (Wong & Sam, 2011). Fear
is a reliable predictor of the uptake of precautionary; sensationalized media frequently causes
misplaced fear. According to Davis, et. al. (2014), too much fear is thought to produce
unruliness and panic, yet too little fear one reason for complacency. When used effectively, the
emotions of fear, worry, and similar emotions can be manipulated by the media to form

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productive behaviors within a community. In a study conducted by Davis, et. al. (2014),
respondents who stated that there were slightly fearful/ fearful were more likely to have practiced
at least one risk avoidance behavior; over half of these respondents had adopted at least three risk
avoidance behaviors. Although the instilling of fear in a population may seem unethical, the
transmission of information should, to an advisable extent, induce fear in order to encourage
individuals to adopt recommended health-protective behavior therefore a moderate level of fear
is suitable in evoking a health public response (Wong & Sam, 2011).
While such framing can cause anxiety and fear that can lead to the preventative and
avoidance behaviors such as avoiding public transit or cancelling international travel plans, it can
also result in counterproductive responses in the public which is evidenced by how the French
people responded. News media during the outbreak of H1N1 in France reported on a vaccination
campaign sponsored by the government, but framed the topic in an alarmist framework which
ultimately resulted in a social amplification of risk. Paradoxically, however, the French did not
respond as expected and actually were less willing to receive vaccines; the disparity between
how media and government portrayed the severity of the threat and the severity perceived by the
public was likely the cause of Frances failed vaccination campaign (Sherlaw & Raude, 2013).
Skepticism can be an unintended product of pandemic framing because in many cases, people
attempt to consume the information regarding the disease presented to them based on past
experiences therefore doubt can be found to be a pervasive sentiment towards pandemic
coverage (Davis, et. al., 2014). The manner in which a pandemic threat is portrayed by the
media can be perceived to be a false depiction of a diseases true severity. In the wake of the
initial outbreak of H1N1 in Hong Kong, the general public was generally unresponsive to media

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hype because they assessed the threat of influenza on past experiences with SARS (Cowling, et.
al., 2010).
An unfortunate consequence in the medias portrayal of pandemics is the stigmatization
of a variety of populations as a means of creating a more tangible threat out of an invisible
assailant. The psychological connections formed by a community attempt to preserve the
immunity from a minority that they perceive wish to threaten it. Such stigmatization has been
prevalent in the most recent influenza outbreak in 2009, with the alienation of Hispanics
Mexicans, in particular. As a result of initial pervasive media coverage surrounding H1N1 that
was produced and consumed irresponsibly, Mexicans were negatively and unfairly associated
with H1N1 which was referred to by initial media reports as Mexican Flu (Gonzalez-Medina,
Le, & Williams, 2011). Original coverage of the disease was noticeably sensationalized and
almost immediately attempted to put a face to the disease. Similarly, the public has negatively
associated the current outbreak of Ebola with the aid workers and members of the military
traveling to West Africa in order to combat the disease. This is a result of medias coverage of
aid efforts which have, ironically, caused the public to perceive these groups in a negative light
(Appendix A).
The formation of stigmas can serve to as coping mechanism against the threat of
infectious diseases, but only when conducted by a community; if only contained to specific
individuals, it could only be classified as prejudice (Gonzalez-Medina, Le, & Williams, 2011).
Chinas response to the outbreak of H1N1 illustrates this because the Chinese government, as a
whole, executed the systematic isolation from Mexico through trade, travel, and other means. In
doing so, it propagated stigmas originally formed by the media and echoed by the public. As a
mode of rapid communication, the media has the role of not only disseminating the general

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public opinion, but also creating an opinion to begin with which was the case during the H1N1
pandemic.
Expanding role of social media in pandemics. Innovations in the modes of communication of
information have quickly expanded the role of social media as a rapid tool of the spread of
information alongside traditional forms of media such as print and television. Social media is
incredibly accessible; it used to both receive credible information and to produce and distribute
new information. Public health leaders on all levels have taken notice of this resource in
addressing concerns directly with the public through the use of social media because it allows for
a quick, direct link to those who are most likely to be impacted by public health crises (Currie,
2009). As an instrument of public education, social media has grown in prominence as various
health agencies such as the CDC have utilized it to directly communicate with the people.
Likewise, public health leaders can quickly switch those who are producing the information to
those consuming the information, receiving updates through anecdotal evidence transmitted
through social media platforms (Currie, 2009).
The general public has become even more connected by the use of social media because
they are directly involved with the cultural timeline and the issues that are affecting them. Media
has integrated the direct experiences of people during events of importance through the
incorporation of social media in official news media. This serves as a means of representing
individual interpretations of a pandemic (Davis, et. al., 2014), but this may falsely represent the
sentiments of the public and cause a misplaced sense of anxiety based off the sentiments of one
individual within a population. Bill Maher, a recognizable television personality, took to Twitter
and referred to those willing to be vaccinated during the 2009 H1N1 outbreak idiots. Although
his statement was not supported by any evidence, it quickly became part of the news cycle and

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referenced as a credible source for weeks (Gerwin, 2012). This instance represents the potential
threat social media can pose by allowing an individual, isolated thought to become nearly as viral
as the disease it is meant to discuss. Furthermore, during the initial case of Ebola in Texas, local
officials had difficulties containing and addressing rumors that were propagated through social
media (Appendix A).
Ensuring positive responses to pandemic media. The media is a potent tool during times of
pandemics because they disseminate information and issues that more often than not remain in
the public consciousness for an extended period of time therefore contributing to a potential
sense of fear, worry, or anxiety. There will be some form of anxiety within the public, but it is
the duty of the media to address this uncertainty (Appendix A). Because of the prominence of
information covered by media, it is important that the information is conveyed to an appropriate
audience in the correct perspective. According to Young, Norman, and Humphreys (2008):
The media function as a critical interface between the scientific community,
government, and the public with a responsibility to strike a careful balance between
raising awareness of issues of public concern and irrationally alarming the public at large.
(p. 6)
To mitigate the possible duress caused by alarming pieces of news, the media must avoid
presenting a distorted image of the true nature of a pandemic threat because distortion can result
in an interpretation of events that does not produce the expected or appropriate response to a
public health crisis (Gerwin, 2012). The positive role of the media as an educator must be
emphasized in current and future coverage of events because if the media transmit conflicting
information without providing precise information for the public to absorb, then people will
become confused limiting their abilities to respond properly to a pandemic.

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Although it is the role of the media to diffuse information to the public, the frames in
which the media tend to present a public health crisis are overly sensationalized and biased
therefore it is ultimately the duty of the individual to responsibly analyze the information
provided to them. In order to ensure that messages from the media are absorbed and processed
productively, the individual must practice self-efficacy and information efficacy when confronted
with information and coverage that is oftentimes spun to evoke a sometimes extreme emotional
response. According to Weintraub Austin, et. al. (2012), generally, individuals who reported a
higher level of information efficacy, the ability to gather accurate information, were more likely
to gauge a variety of factors when analyzing a piece of media. When an individual possessed
actual media literacy skills, he or she understood that media must be analyzed with a variety of
factors to ensure the credibility of the information presented; they showed an understanding that
sources need to be evaluated for their expertise, an importance measure of media literacy
(Weintraub Austin, et. al., 2012).
CONCLUSION
The media plays a vital role in generating a response in the general public during times of
pandemic threats because it is ultimately the most immediate source of information on a threat
that can spread the a population rapidly. Throughout various communities and during different
outbreaks, the success of the media in this endeavor has greatly varied; in some cases, the media
generated a response that could be categorized as overzealous whereas other times the media
failed to create a sufficient level of worry to mobilize the public to protective actions. The extent
to which people respond to media regarding infectious diseases depends greatly upon how the
media frames the event because media sources must present the pandemic in a balanced manner
that does not overhype the disease nor downplay it. Fear and anxiety are major motivators for

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the uptake of precautionary behaviors during public health crises, but when the public perceives
the fear to be unnecessary as a result of poor framing, they will not respond in a positive,
productive way. The volume of the media also contributes to this because the amount of
coverage can be interpreted by the public to be excessive when the sheer volume becomes
overwhelming and is al l that the public seems to be receiving. This causes the public to either
become overwhelmed by the flow of information to the point that the disregard it or to perceive
the threat of pandemic disease to a higher risk than it truly presents causing an unneeded
overreaction.
The approach of media in times of pandemics has become even more complex with the
introduction of social media which has served to, in some cases, replace media outlets entirely.
People obtain information directly from one another, but the credibility of such information can
be lacking resulting in fallacies in ones perceptions of infectious disease. However, when used
responsibly, social media can prove to be incredibly beneficial to the diffusion of accurate
information. Media must work to ensure that the public responds positively to the messages they
transmit, but in the end, it is the duty of the individual to assess a source for its validity. Media
presents to society a wealth of information that may come to the individual skewed and distorted,
but the accessibility that media affords the general public is invaluable even if the information
that can be accessed isnt always actionable. There are several obstacles faced by individuals
when obtaining information from the media, but as a diffusor of information, it cannot be
eliminated from how people learn to perceive pandemic threats.

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APPENDIX A
Verbatim transcript of interview with Larry Hill, the Eastern Region Virginia Department of
Health Public Information Officer.
1. In light of recent developments in the Ebola outbreak, how do you think news media has
handled diffusion of information to the public?
I think this depends on the news agency. Ive seen some that have done some great stories
and others that have been speculating a lot. Speculation does not help the situation.
Another problem has been their subject matter experts. They seem to heighten the anxiety
of the public when reporting. Media needs to report the stories fairly and understand this
is a new disease we are not used to here in the U.S.
2. Do you believe that, to an extent, that the news media has sensationalized and over
exaggerated the threat the Ebola virus actually poses to the general public?
At times I think the media has created too much hype. They need to take time to learn
more about Ebola and be responsible when reporting on the subject. Not all subject
matter experts are as knowledgeable on this subject as others. The news media has to be
responsible when reporting on Ebola and make sure the messages public health are
trying to get out are relayed to the public. Scaring people is not reporting.
3. The social amplification of risk, the concept that people perceive a threat to be greater
than it actually is relative to potentially more harmful threats, seems to be implicated in
current media coverage of Ebola. If news media reported on the Ebola pandemic fairly,
without an alarmist framework, but with the same volume of coverage, would this risk
amplification be occurring?
I think even if the media were reporting fairly, there would still be some sort of fear by
the public. The numbers of so many that have died can be scary. This is the reason public

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health has to make sure they use risk communications when responding to the public
messaging. They cannot over reassure the public. We have to rely on facts and go from
there. We have to be able to address the hard questions. People want to know if they and
their families are safe. We have to acknowledge uncertainty. I do think the amplification
can be reduced when reporting responsibly.
4. How do you think that the sensationalism surrounding public health crises such as Ebola
and H1N1 has affected the publics willingness to adopt precautionary behaviors? Do
you believe that it has encouraged mobilization of people to adopt such behaviors or has
it actually deterred them from doing so?
I saw during H1N1 the public take it serious and get vaccinated. Washing your hands is
always a must. During that time, H1N1 did not turn out as bad as first feared and the
public say we overreacted. However, because so many people got vaccinated, the disease
could not spread. They did exactly what we needed to do to reduce the spread of the
disease. Once again, I think people are watching carefully and waiting for that message
that tells them how to protect themselves.
5. During the H1N1 outbreak of 2009, the Mexican and Hispanic populations were subject
to stigmatization as a result of early news reports often referring to the influenza outbreak
as Mexican flu. How can stigmatization such as this be prevented through media?
Media doesnt usually worry about stigmatization until you point it out to them. I saw the
same thing during H1N1 and everything coming from Mexico was an issue. Now with
Ebola, our healthcare workers that go to Africa and our soldiers are being stigmatized.
The military are making sure their folks are observed for 21 days before being sent home.

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If you can find a way to reassure there is nothing to fear, stigmatization wouldnt be an
issue.
6. In your opinion, has social media played a positive or negative role in the dissemination
of pandemic information?
Social media has played a huge role in the positive and negative role in the dissemination
of pandemic information. There has been a lot of misinformation shared on social media
about Ebola. However, CDC and others have also used social media to properly inform
the public about Ebola. Its my understanding during the event in Texas, they were having
a really hard time keeping up with all the rumors on social media.

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