Vaccination, which is called the key to solving Corona 19, began on February 26th. The media also showed high interest, and related reports are also increasing. However, concerns over sensational vaccine coverage by the media have grown to the point that medical experts, government and ruling party politicians, and President Moon Jae-in have been urging them to be wary of’false manipulation information’ that can arouse public unrest. The Citizens’ Alliance for Democratic Press looked at the problems of media coverage that appeared before and after vaccination, and summarized what is needed for a good report.
Press reports that were busy raising anxiety
First of all, this is a report that promoted anxiety and distrust about vaccines that were pointed out as the biggest problem. This is a case of creating unnecessary controversy or encouraging anxiety about a specific vaccine. The type that appeared frequently was reports that simply conveyed unfounded civic anxiety and questioned the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
TV Chosun <“2300만 명분 더 확보”… 아스트라 불신은?>(February 16, reporter Jeong Eun-hye) emphasized’distrust’ about the AstraZeneca vaccine from the title. “The dissatisfaction of the elderly who had to get the unproven AstraZeneca vaccine increased” was the main content.
TV Chosun <“의료진은 화이자, 일반 직원은 제외”>(February 24, reporter Hwang Byung-jun) is the same case. TV Chosun argued that “(among medical staff) only doctors and nurses who directly treat corona patients receive the Pfizer vaccine. Even if the medical staff in the same hospital, the person who received the Pfizer vaccine and the person who received the AstraZeneca vaccine are different.” I did. Not being vaccinated with the same vaccine to the medical staff, he even told an anonymous hospital official remarks, “Because it proves that AstraZeneca is not (effective) rather than Pfizer.” It is a type of report that has had a major impact on giving the impression that’AstraZeneca vaccine is not proven effective, and Pfizer vaccine is superior.’
Delivering civic anxiety without reporting objective facts
Of course, it is clear that citizens have anxiety. If so, the media should start with reporting to find the cause of the anxiety and find a solution. However, many media such as TV Chosun focused on simply conveying civic anxiety, and did not report any opinions of experts on the efficacy, role, and safety of the vaccine, which increased the anxiety.
After starting vaccination in the U.S. and the U.K., it was discovered that there were few severely ill patients among the vaccinated people, and it was proved that the Corona 19 vaccine not only’forms the immune system’ but also acts as a’suppression of severe patients. Domestic experts also said there was no doubt about the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine. At the National Vaccine Special Briefing at the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on February 8, Professor Nam Jae-hwan of the Department of Medical Life Sciences at Catholic University said, “Even if the vaccine does not prevent the infection itself, it can prevent it from progressing to severe” and “It is difficult to judge whether the vaccines to be introduced in Korea are good or bad. You can get any vaccine with confidence.” Hankook Ilbo <아스트라제네카 효능 논란에 “중증 막는 것도 중요한 역할, 나쁜 백신은 없다”>(Reporter Lim So-hyung on February 9) reported the same.
February 18 MBC Radio <표창원의 뉴스하이킥>Kim Ki-joo, the director of Sunhanbit Nursing Hospital, who appeared in the film, is asked to get AstraZeneca vaccine even for seniors 65 years of age or older, as the AstraZeneca vaccine is the second approved vaccine by the WHO, and the safety and effectiveness of the AstraZeneca vaccine are guaranteed. Expressed hope. However, most of the media highlighted the controversy about the efficacy and safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine, and as a result of not playing its role, anxiety spread, and the government delayed vaccination of the AstraZeneca vaccine for the elderly. Few media have listened to the claims of medical experts that the elderly need to get AstraZeneca vaccination even to prevent the outbreak of severe patients.
‘Vaccine discrimination by medical staff’ also does not correspond to objective facts. YTN <뉴있저-코로나 백신 국내 접종 시작… “언론·정치권 악용 말아야”>Lee Jae-gap, professor of infectious medicine at Hallym University, who appeared on (February 26), said that the reason for the different types of vaccines was the difference in timing. Professor Lee explained that workers at the forefront of the coronavirus need to be vaccinated first. “Because the Pfizer vaccine came in first, they gave it a vaccination.”
Professor Lee said on the day the vaccination began, “the media’s sensational reports or abuse of the politicians can take place, which can greatly hinder the smooth vaccination.” The press has also asked the press to quote vaccine experts’ opinions and not quote non-scientific comments from politicians.
Is Citation of Overseas Cases’Selective Dictation’?
There have also been many reports that simply convey overseas cases related to AstraZeneca vaccine. Seoul newspaper <종주국 영국도 꺼린다… 유럽서 AZ 기피 확산>This is the same article as (February 24, reporter Kim Jin-ah). From the title, the Seoul newspaper revealed that the AstraZeneca vaccine evasion is spreading in Europe, including the UK. French President Macron mentioned that the approval of the AstraZeneca vaccine was too hasty, and said that the AstraZeneca vaccine was not trusted in Germany and Italy. The Seoul newspaper argued that the avoidance was spread because “the results of an experiment showing that the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine is inferior to that of Pfizer, BioEntech, and Moder or vaccines.”
Chosun Ilbo <독일선 ‘아스트라 불신’에 재고 쌓여… 공무원·경찰이 맞는다>(February 26, Paris Correspondent Son Jin-seok) is similar. The Chosun Ilbo paid attention to Germany among the cases mentioned by the Seoul newspaper on the day the domestic vaccination began. He claimed that the AstraZeneca vaccine is “cold and eaten” in Germany, and that the neglected AstraZeneca vaccine is “initiating vaccinations to public sector workers” because of the fear that the AstraZeneca vaccine will be discarded after the expiration date. Reports of growing evasion in Europe were enough to cultivate distrust of the AstraZeneca vaccine among domestic readers.
Reports by the two newspapers turned out to be inaccurate within a week. BBC
The reason for the change in German and French policies is simple. This is because the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine has been verified through the inoculation results. BBC
BBC
Controversy about’No. 1 vaccination’ initiated by politicians and raised by the media
The controversy over the’No. 1 vaccinator’ before vaccination is also a very irresponsible sensational report. As the vaccination date approached, the politicians began a battle over’who will be the first inoculation?’ It was triggered when Yoo Seung-min, a former member of the Future Integration Party, posted a post on Facebook on February 29 stating that “AstraZeneca, the President must be beaten first to eliminate distrust.” MBN <유승민 “아스트라제네카, 대통령부터 맞아야 불신 없애”>(February 19, reporter Paik Gil-jong) reported the content first. It was an article that replied’Bokbul (copy and paste)’ in the article of Congressman Yoo.
Chosun Ilbo <여 “대통령이 접종 1호? 실험대상이냐” 야 “그럼 국민은 뭐냐”>(February 21, reporter Song Hye-jin) wrote a statement by the Democratic Party lawmaker Chung Cheong-rae as well as “The president’s request to get a vaccine first is bullshit that is worse than’Choding Earl’,” Kim Yong-tae, the power of the people “What kind of experiment is this subject?” he said, “Dictation”. JoongAng Ilbo <야당 “문 대통령이 AZ 1호 접종을” 여당 “국가원수가 실험 대상인가”>(February 22nd, reporter Sung Ji-won) also relayed the rebuttals and rebuttals that continued in the political world, while US President-elect Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also attacked the politicians, saying, “In their own country,’No. 1 vaccination’ was made.” Helped.
The number of ‘1st inoculation’ by country differed depending on the situation. Only three countries, Israel, the Czech Republic, and Turkey, have been vaccinated by the head of the state. This was the strategy I chose because my distrust about the vaccine was quite high. In most European countries, such as the UK and Germany, the elderly were the ‘1st inoculation’. Eventually, the controversy over’No. 1 vaccination’ was settled by “inoculating in accordance with the prescribed sequence”, as the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyung said. It was the result of inciting citizens’ anxiety without any meaningful comments on vaccine safety. The primary responsibility rests with the politics, but even the press, which simply’pastes’ these remarks and delivers them, is also irresponsible.
There were a handful of articles pointing to the politicians using vaccination as a subject of political conflict. Hankyoreh <사설-백해무익한 ‘대통령 1호 접종’ 공방 당장 멈춰야>In (February 22), “In Korea, 94% of the primary vaccination subjects agreed to vaccination. If the president receives the vaccination first, he will attack this time with’preferential treatment’. <사설-대통령 1호 접종 논란, 바람직하지 않다>In (February 23), he just criticized, “It is irresponsible and troublesome to raise the vaccination anxiety as a political issue in a situation where it will not be enough even if we cooperate with public opinion for vaccination.”
Stop broadcasting numbers that incite distrust and anxiety!
Even after the vaccination began, reports of unfounded anxiety have been released. Chosun Ilbo <백신 이틀간 2만명 ‘거북이 접종’… 독감 땐 330만명>(Reporter Seongmo Kim and Minjung Kim on March 1) is the representative. The Chosun Ilbo, which took the issue of the corona vaccination rate’slower than the flu vaccination,’ said, “The corona vaccination is far lower than our medical infrastructure and capabilities. I can,” he insisted. “The corona vaccine is about 20,000 people in the two days since vaccination was started, and it is 0.6-10% of the flu vaccination rate.” There was no information to judge whether such a comparison was reasonable based on criticism of the flu vaccine that hits tens of millions of people each year and the corona vaccine, which was developed in 2020 and will be the first vaccine this year.
Even in the process of reporting on personnel who have had adverse vaccination reactions, there were articles that could provoke civil anxiety. The Chosun Ilbo article mentioned earlier said, “112 side effects over two days… With a small title, “Similar to English and American,” he said, “It is mild, but there are many reports of abnormal cases.” TV Chosun <접종 사흘째… “이상반응 모두 경증”>(February 28, reporter Seo Young-il), unlike the title of the broadcast, <백신 이상반응 97건 추가, 총 112건… “두통 등 경증 사례”>I built it. In the title, there were a total of 112 vaccine adverse reactions, and 97 cases were added. He also emphasized that “the number of reports that were 15 on the first day is increasing.”
The Chosun Ilbo report comparing the corona 19 vaccination with the flu vaccination is at a childish level. The flu vaccine is an annual vaccination, and compared to the COVID-19 vaccine, the targets of the flu vaccine are much wider and the vaccination source is diverse. It is not an object that can be placed on the same line and compared. Nevertheless, the Chosun Ilbo emphasized that the number of inoculations in the same period differs from 20,000 to 3.3 million over an incomparable target. Reports are at high risk of leaving a negative impression that vaccination is sluggish.
The same goes for reports of adverse reactions. Since vaccination has just begun, it is not easy to determine the causal relationship for adverse reactions, and reporting only the number of adverse reactions is likely to exaggerate the risk. At least the Hankook Ilbo <코로나 백신 이상반응 0.5% 수준… 전문가들 “일반 백신과 비슷”>(February 28, reporter Kim Cheong-hwan), JTBC <2만명 넘게 맞았다… 접종 후 가벼운 증상>Like (Reporter Song Woo-young on March 1), it is necessary to indicate that an adverse reaction occurred out of the total number of cases, or to report the trend so that the trend can be determined.
We need’correct’ vaccine coverage
The key to reporting on the Corona 19 vaccine is the delivery of accurate information. It should be guided to reduce anxiety by providing necessary information to citizens through accurate reporting, and to increase the quarantine effect with information that is useful for daily life. In contrast to the previously pointed out reports of problems, some media reported information that was beneficial to citizens. The role of media coverage in the spread of infectious diseases was culled with examples.
Sisa IN‧BBC Korea delivers necessary information to citizens
As the unprecedented spread of infectious diseases continues, the importance of vaccines has increased and interest in vaccines has naturally increased. In addition, unconfirmed facts began to spread. In this situation, it is important for the media to deliver accurate vaccine-related information through in-depth coverage and in-depth analysis. Reports by BBC Korea and Sisa IN are good examples of vaccine information reporting.
BBC Korea <코로나 백신: 6가지 질문으로 알아보는 백신의 모든 것>(January 22) reported on the principles and efficacy of general vaccines, characteristics of the Corona 19 vaccine, etc., according to vaccination. Basic information, such as the origin of the vaccine, was delivered, and detailed answers were given to questions that were curious from the reader’s point of view, such as “Should I get the Corona 19 vaccine?”.
Before this, preview IN <2021 당신이 알아야 할 모든 것… ‘코로나19 백신 A to Z’>(Reporter Kim Yeon-hee and Choi Ye-rin on January 7th) reported in a more specific summary of the Corona 19 vaccine-related information. Sisa IN categorizes the vaccines developed so far by type, and explains the principle in detail. In particular, the development process of individual vaccines was dealt with in detail to solve any doubts that readers might have. Contrary to the fact that some media only reported that AstraZeneca vaccine had been suspended in clinical trials, SisaIN was interpreted by experts, saying, “Clinical trial pauses are common,” and “the process of filtering out potential side effects is working properly. Because it shows, there is a rather reliable side.”
There are also reports that help readers understand and reduce anxiety with lively reports. BBC reporter Hanif Mazruei
Sisa IN <도착에서 관찰까지 30분, 코로나19 백신 모의접종 체험해보니>(February 26, reporter Kim Yeon-hee) is the same case. Reporter Kim Yeon-hee directly participated in the vaccination simulation training at the National Medical Center and delivered realistically how the vaccination proceeds. We explained in detail the questions we have from the reader’s point of view, such as how the vaccination precautionary sheet was structured, how the procedure proceeds when the actual vaccination is received, and where the vaccination will be received. Reports from the BBC and Sisa IN are a good example of how the media should approach when it comes to delivering the information they need to citizens.
The New York Times Scientific Journalism, What to Learn
The New York Times is reporting the highest quality in the Corona 19 outbreak. With graphics and brief descriptions, it was easy to see how the Corona 19 virus penetrates the human body, and it showed us what the genes that make up the Corona 19 virus play a role. After vaccine development progresses, we report on how different types of vaccines work, and the relevant information is constantly updated. The’Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker’, which provides comprehensive information on the Corona 19 vaccine, is also constantly being updated. You can see at a glance how vaccine development and vaccination is progressing around the world.
The New York Times Scientific Journalism is a prime example of reporting that accurately, easily, quickly and in depth conveys the information that readers need. Unlike the Korean media, which causes anxiety through sensational reports or simply communicates them, it shows that the media must have expertise in order to properly play a public role in the situation of the spread of infectious diseases. On the other hand, the Korean media are mass-producing problem reports even after vaccination has started.
Herald Economy
In this regard, Jae-hoon Jeong, a professor of preventive medicine at Gachon University, said on Facebook that “nursing hospitals and nursing homes where vaccinations are given are places where most inpatients spend the end of their lives.” “Death after vaccination in nursing homes and nursing hospitals is a side effect of the vaccine. Most likely not. In order to deal with this properly, it requires a careful approach from the media.”
The New York Times chief executive Mark Thompson, who is gaining worldwide trust from the Corona 19 report, told CNN that “Now, we are having a strange and terrible experience, this is the moment when we can find readers and prove the value of reliable news in the media.” Said. The same goes for the Korean media. Now that the vaccination has started to overcome infectious diseases, the vaccination itself may not be successful unless the press reports scientifically and carefully. More importantly, it is not possible to restore media confidence. This is because the media that proves the value of the news can receive the support of the citizens and restore the broken trust.
※ Monitor target: The Kyunghyang Shinmun, Dong-A Ilbo, Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo, Hankyoreh, Hankook Ilbo, Maeil Economic Daily, Korea Economic Paper Report, KBS <뉴스9>, MBC <뉴스데스크>, SBS <8뉴스>, JTBC <뉴스룸>(Part 1, 2), TV Chosun <종합뉴스9>(weekday)/<종합뉴스7>(Weekend), Channel A <뉴스A>, MBN <종합뉴스>Reports After Searching for’Corona 19 Vaccine’ on Naver
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