This study investigates the impact of social media ‘fake news’ and fake cures headlines on how Netizens viewed and responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria. Using data from an online survey (N=254), this study reveals that social media was overwhelmingly the most used type of media for news consumption generally, and the most important source of news about the pandemic. Data further reveal that the impact of extensive exposure to fake news headlines about the pandemic was dangerous and could have a deleterious impact. Crucially, this study finds that recalling and believing fake news headlines and using social media as the main source of news, significantly decreases the likelihood of believing credible and real news stories. Finally, this study offers theoretical and empirical background to frame the debate about factors that influence the believability of fake news headlines by contributing and extending the theorization of the amplification hypothesis.
{"title":"Social media, fake news and fake COVID-19 cures in Nigeria","authors":"Temple Uwalaka, Bigman Nwala, Amadi Confidence Chinedu","doi":"10.1386/jams_00058_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00058_1","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates the impact of social media ‘fake news’ and fake cures headlines on how Netizens viewed and responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria. Using data from an online survey (N=254), this study reveals that social media was overwhelmingly the\u0000 most used type of media for news consumption generally, and the most important source of news about the pandemic. Data further reveal that the impact of extensive exposure to fake news headlines about the pandemic was dangerous and could have a deleterious impact. Crucially, this study finds\u0000 that recalling and believing fake news headlines and using social media as the main source of news, significantly decreases the likelihood of believing credible and real news stories. Finally, this study offers theoretical and empirical background to frame the debate about factors that influence\u0000 the believability of fake news headlines by contributing and extending the theorization of the amplification hypothesis.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77004213","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The arrival of the coronavirus pandemic in (West) Africa announced a health crisis that required increasing levels of care, on the physical as well as on the emotional level. At the same time, societies had to respect social distancing rules that impeded regular care relationships. This article analysed social media as one means for West African-diasporic actors to practice care in this situation of physical immobility. It is based on a critical discourse analysis of postings on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and WhatsApp. This analysis showed that West African-diasporic actors used social media to perform emotional practices of care through informing on COVID-19-related issues, raising awareness and encouraging compliance with anti-COVID-19 measures. In addition, these practices of care unveil negotiations of sociopolitical power relations that oscillate between opportunities for solidarity and sociopolitical change, on the one hand, and intersectional exclusions, on the other hand.
{"title":"West African-diasporic social media users facing COVID-19: Care, emotions and power during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic","authors":"Syntia Hasenöhrl","doi":"10.1386/jams_00054_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00054_1","url":null,"abstract":"The arrival of the coronavirus pandemic in (West) Africa announced a health crisis that required increasing levels of care, on the physical as well as on the emotional level. At the same time, societies had to respect social distancing rules that impeded regular care relationships.\u0000 This article analysed social media as one means for West African-diasporic actors to practice care in this situation of physical immobility. It is based on a critical discourse analysis of postings on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and WhatsApp. This analysis showed that West African-diasporic\u0000 actors used social media to perform emotional practices of care through informing on COVID-19-related issues, raising awareness and encouraging compliance with anti-COVID-19 measures. In addition, these practices of care unveil negotiations of sociopolitical power relations that oscillate\u0000 between opportunities for solidarity and sociopolitical change, on the one hand, and intersectional exclusions, on the other hand.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79593850","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This article delineates the material relations, routines and sensorial responses inhabited by people in Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. It grounds views on a discourse of behavioural change while exploring how Ugandans, Kenyans and Rwandans responded to COVID-19 messages populated on selected official government Twitter accounts. The article is a mixed methods study that employs a numeric and discursive analytic approach, with the nudge theory proving particularly congenial. Findings show that a civic nationalism was enunciated in the hinterland. The nomenclature evoked in the wake of enforcing pandemic restrictive measures is both politically and socially repressive. Far from presuming fixed identities, the conceptual thread that is knit together during the pandemic oscillates from broad support to a problem of behavioural fatigue.
{"title":"Is we they? A cross-cultural study of responses to COVID-19 updates in Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda","authors":"Robert Madoi Nasaba, Nakiwala Aisha Sembatya","doi":"10.1386/jams_00053_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00053_1","url":null,"abstract":"This article delineates the material relations, routines and sensorial responses inhabited by people in Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. It grounds views on a discourse of behavioural change while exploring how Ugandans, Kenyans and Rwandans\u0000 responded to COVID-19 messages populated on selected official government Twitter accounts. The article is a mixed methods study that employs a numeric and discursive analytic approach, with the nudge theory proving particularly congenial. Findings show that a civic nationalism was enunciated\u0000 in the hinterland. The nomenclature evoked in the wake of enforcing pandemic restrictive measures is both politically and socially repressive. Far from presuming fixed identities, the conceptual thread that is knit together during the pandemic oscillates from broad support to a problem of\u0000 behavioural fatigue.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89602108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and unscientific interpretations flooded the internet. Seeking credible information in Egypt was paramount at the time. An answer to this quest was ‘Ask Nameesa’, an award-winning Egyptian-focused chatbot that utilizes Facebook Messenger to communicate with social media users in an individualized response engagement. It relies on information validated by WHO and the Egyptian Ministry of Health. This article examines the structure of Ask Nameesa as an example of infobots and studies the interactive engagement it offers users to provide health information. The study analyses data gathered by interviewing the founder and CEO of DXwand, the company that developed Ask Nameesa as well as content analysis of conversations with Ask Nameesa to assess its user engagement. The study aims at understanding the potential Ask Nameesa has in providing information literacy and tackling public demand for information.
{"title":"Infobotting COVID-19: A case study of Ask Nameesa in Egypt","authors":"Mona Khattab","doi":"10.1386/jams_00059_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00059_1","url":null,"abstract":"With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and unscientific interpretations flooded the internet. Seeking credible information in Egypt was paramount at the time. An answer to this quest was ‘Ask Nameesa’, an award-winning Egyptian-focused chatbot that utilizes\u0000 Facebook Messenger to communicate with social media users in an individualized response engagement. It relies on information validated by WHO and the Egyptian Ministry of Health. This article examines the structure of Ask Nameesa as an example of infobots and studies the interactive engagement\u0000 it offers users to provide health information. The study analyses data gathered by interviewing the founder and CEO of DXwand, the company that developed Ask Nameesa as well as content analysis of conversations with Ask Nameesa to assess its user engagement. The study aims at understanding\u0000 the potential Ask Nameesa has in providing information literacy and tackling public demand for information.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88111726","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
While an incredible series of twists characterized the fight against COVID-19 in Burundi and its narration, references to God have never been missing in the narratives around the disease. Trust in God represented one of the pillars of the government’s narrative, next to an attitude of ‘denialism’, and the fight against ‘fake news’. This article analyses the evolution of the narration of COVID-19 on Twitter during the first three phases of the fight against the disease, focusing on the use of the religious narrative. Within Burundi’s contemporary sociopolitical context, analysis of these narratives on social media best demonstrates how the fight against COVID-19 in Burundi was a fight for the control of the narrative, and by extension for political legitimacy.
{"title":"God and COVID-19 in Burundian social media: The political fight for the control of the narrative","authors":"Antea Paviotti","doi":"10.1386/jams_00055_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00055_1","url":null,"abstract":"While an incredible series of twists characterized the fight against COVID-19 in Burundi and its narration, references to God have never been missing in the narratives around the disease. Trust in God represented one of the pillars of the government’s narrative, next to an attitude\u0000 of ‘denialism’, and the fight against ‘fake news’. This article analyses the evolution of the narration of COVID-19 on Twitter during the first three phases of the fight against the disease, focusing on the use of the religious narrative. Within Burundi’s contemporary\u0000 sociopolitical context, analysis of these narratives on social media best demonstrates how the fight against COVID-19 in Burundi was a fight for the control of the narrative, and by extension for political legitimacy.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73260195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
H. Wasserman, W. Chuma, T. Bosch, Chikezie E. Uzuegbunam, Rachel Flynn
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has led to unprecedented media coverage globally and in South Africa where, at the time of writing, over 20,000 people had died from the virus. This article explores how mainstream print media covered the COVID-19 pandemic during this time of crisis. The news media play a key role in keeping the public informed during such health crises and potentially shape citizens’ perceptions of the pandemic. Drawing on a content analysis of 681 front-page news stories across eleven English-language publications, we found that nearly half of the stories used an alarmist narrative, more than half of the stories had a negative tone, and most publications reported in an episodic rather than thematic manner. Most of the stories focused on impacts of the pandemic and included high levels of sensationalism. In addition, despite the alarmist and negative nature of the reporting, most of the front-page reports did not provide information about ways to limit the spread of the virus or attempt to counter misinformation about the pandemic, raising key issues about the roles and responsibilities of the South African media during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study shows that South African newspaper coverage of COVID-19 was largely negative, possibly to attract audience attention and increase market share, but that this alarmist coverage left little possibility for citizens’ individual agency and self-efficacy in navigating the pandemic.
{"title":"South African newspaper coverage of COVID-19: A content analysis","authors":"H. Wasserman, W. Chuma, T. Bosch, Chikezie E. Uzuegbunam, Rachel Flynn","doi":"10.1386/jams_00052_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00052_1","url":null,"abstract":"The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has led to unprecedented media coverage globally and in South Africa where, at the time of writing, over 20,000 people had died from the virus. This article explores how mainstream print media covered the COVID-19 pandemic during this time of crisis.\u0000 The news media play a key role in keeping the public informed during such health crises and potentially shape citizens’ perceptions of the pandemic. Drawing on a content analysis of 681 front-page news stories across eleven English-language publications, we found that nearly half of\u0000 the stories used an alarmist narrative, more than half of the stories had a negative tone, and most publications reported in an episodic rather than thematic manner. Most of the stories focused on impacts of the pandemic and included high levels of sensationalism. In addition, despite the\u0000 alarmist and negative nature of the reporting, most of the front-page reports did not provide information about ways to limit the spread of the virus or attempt to counter misinformation about the pandemic, raising key issues about the roles and responsibilities of the South African media\u0000 during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study shows that South African newspaper coverage of COVID-19 was largely negative, possibly to attract audience attention and increase market share, but that this alarmist coverage left little possibility for citizens’ individual agency and self-efficacy\u0000 in navigating the pandemic.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75001951","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Media and global pandemics: Continuities and discontinuities","authors":"Tendai Chari, Ufuoma Akpojivi","doi":"10.1386/jams_00050_2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00050_2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83630956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The article discusses the freedom of expression crisis that characterized the authoritarian response of the Egyptian government to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the case study of the expulsion of the foreign correspondent for The Guardian over contested outbreak data, the article argues that authorities in Egypt exploited the pandemic for political ends by silencing critics and by manipulating the public opinion.
{"title":"‘You can’t arrest a virus’: The freedom of expression crisis within Egypt’s response to COVID-19","authors":"Gabriele Cosentino","doi":"10.1386/JAMS_00044_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/JAMS_00044_1","url":null,"abstract":"The article discusses the freedom of expression crisis that characterized the authoritarian response of the Egyptian government to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the case study of the expulsion of the foreign correspondent for The Guardian over contested outbreak data, the article argues that authorities in Egypt exploited the pandemic for political ends by silencing critics and by manipulating the public opinion.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75957461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
COVID-19 is described as ‘novel’ largely because the virus has rarely been studied. Without any vaccine, the key to containing the virus was the timely delivery of educative public health information to people. With a population of 29 million composed of small urban segments, Ghana has enormous rural enclaves where most of her citizens live. This study seeks to explore the nature of Ghana’s COVID-19 campaign, focusing on the communication strategies and the extent to which indigenous communication tools (ICTs) have been employed. Relying on document analysis, Ghana’s COVID-19 campaign rarely deployed ICTs but rather paid lip service to the country’s indigenous resources in public addresses to the nation. It also found that the fight against the virus metamorphosed into political campaigns making WHO’s vital information subservient to images of political figures and political iconography in general. We argue that the nature of the campaign created generalized awareness of the pandemic, but did less to educate the masses on the WHO preventive protocols.
{"title":"Communication lapses to combating COVID-19 pandemic: Evaluating Ghana’s COVID-19 campaign","authors":"J. Nyarko, M. Serwornoo, Benedine Azanu","doi":"10.1386/JAMS_00041_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/JAMS_00041_1","url":null,"abstract":"COVID-19 is described as ‘novel’ largely because the virus has rarely been studied. Without any vaccine, the key to containing the virus was the timely delivery of educative public health information to people. With a population of 29 million composed of small urban segments, Ghana has enormous rural enclaves where most of her citizens live. This study seeks to explore the nature of Ghana’s COVID-19 campaign, focusing on the communication strategies and the extent to which indigenous communication tools (ICTs) have been employed. Relying on document analysis, Ghana’s COVID-19 campaign rarely deployed ICTs but rather paid lip service to the country’s indigenous resources in public addresses to the nation. It also found that the fight against the virus metamorphosed into political campaigns making WHO’s vital information subservient to images of political figures and political iconography in general. We argue that the nature of the campaign created generalized awareness of the pandemic, but did less to educate the masses on the WHO preventive protocols.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84911829","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on health systems and economies around the world. This is particularly true for developing and newly industrialized countries that often have to deal with poverty and inadequate health systems. A greater awareness of COVID-19 and its consequences, generated and fostered by journalistic health reporting, may contribute to better preparations. The societal importance of journalistic health reporting and its challenges in sub-Saharan societies during the pandemic are examined. A qualitative research design relying on interviews with representatives of African science and health journalism organizations is employed. The results show that health reporting during health crises can provide a variety of normative functions of journalism in democracies and in autocratic developing and newly industrialized countries, but it presents many challenges for journalists and media houses. COVID-19 also offers starting points for global media assistance in strengthening and improving health reporting in the long term.
{"title":"The societal importance of journalistic health reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa: Impressions from science and health journalism organizations","authors":"Stefan Wollnik","doi":"10.1386/JAMS_00040_1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1386/JAMS_00040_1","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on health systems and economies around the world. This is particularly true for developing and newly industrialized countries that often have to deal with poverty and inadequate health systems. A greater awareness of COVID-19 and its consequences, generated and fostered by journalistic health reporting, may contribute to better preparations. The societal importance of journalistic health reporting and its challenges in sub-Saharan societies during the pandemic are examined. A qualitative research design relying on interviews with representatives of African science and health journalism organizations is employed. The results show that health reporting during health crises can provide a variety of normative functions of journalism in democracies and in autocratic developing and newly industrialized countries, but it presents many challenges for journalists and media houses. COVID-19 also offers starting points for global media assistance in strengthening and improving health reporting in the long term.","PeriodicalId":43702,"journal":{"name":"Journal of African Media Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83107243","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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