News coverage can play a vital role during public health crises, raising awareness about potential risks, informing about response efforts, and encouraging preventive behaviors. How ever, the COVID pandemic has increased the precariousness of journalists while introducing new challenges in their work.
This article presents the results of a thematic analysis of news articles about the initial stages of the COVID outbreak in Portugal, published in a Portuguese quality newspaper from January to March Results show the relevance of geographical and cultural proximity as news values in international coverage.
While the quantification of cases and deaths was a prominent theme in international and domestic coverage, specific cases of infection were frequent in domestic news, while general epidemiological indicators were more often the main theme in international coverage. News about events in Portugal was also more focused on specific containment and mitigation measures, while international coverage found states of emergency and lockdowns more newsworthy.
The experiences and opinions of people speaking as individuals and not on behalf of organizations were much less frequent. No entanto, a pandemia COVID aumentou a precariedade dos jornalistas, ao mesmo tempo introduzindo novos desafios no seu trabalho. DOI: Consequently, the demand for trustworthy and reliable information increases, making news media organizations crucial for disseminating information about potential risks, due to their reach and systematic coverage.
However, the recent COVID pandemic arrived in a context of change for news organizations, marked by declining revenues and still unproven digital business models. More specifically, it looks into the main news values and information sources driving the coverage between January and March This period includes the initial stages of the outbreak, when news of an epidemic in Wuhan first broke out, to the first cases of contagion in Portugal and the adoption of the first nationwide response measures.
