Impact of COVID-19 on journalistic practices in Pakistan

Sayyed Fawad Ali Shah, Shahsawar Khan, Salman Ali Shah, Faizullah Jan, Zia Ullah

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Published conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

Journalists play a critical role in the dissemination of health information to the public, especially during crisis situations such as pandemics and endemics. For example, journalists played a pivotal role in keeping people informed during the spread of infectious diseases such as SARS and H1N1 influenza. However, journalists have also been accused by doctors and health officials of misreporting or creating sensationalism during public health emergencies. The spread of misinformation and disinformation has emerged as a major public health concern that has made the role of journalists more challenging. Journalists are expected to shield themselves from mis/disinformation and at the same time counter fake news about the COVID-19 virus and its vaccine. In such a situation, it has become even more crucial for journalists to remain reliable and credible sources of information. Journalism practices during crises such as pandemics have remained an understudied area of academic research. Most of the research on journalistic practices during pandemics has been conducted in Western countries. There is a lack of research on how the current pandemic has influenced journalistic practices in the emerging democracies of the global South. Our chapter aims to fill this gap by exploring journalistic practices in Pakistan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on interviews with journalists and an analysis of regional media contents, we investigate how the pandemic influenced journalistic practices and how the local media covered the pandemic.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationCommunicating COVID-19: Media, Trust, and Public Engagement
EditorsMonique Lewis, Eliza Govender, Kate Holland
Place of PublicationCham
PublisherSpringer International Publishing AG
Pages83-102
Number of pages20
ISBN (Print)978-3-031-41237-0
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 4 Jan 2024
Externally publishedYes

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