Wang Weili, Zhang Wenxuan
School of Journalism and New Media, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Shaanxi, 710049, China.
HSBC Business School, Peking University, Shenzhen, China.
BMC Public Health. 2025 Mar 31;25(1):1222. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-21840-2.
The COVID-19 pandemic has generated widespread uncertainty, leading to an overabundance of information and fuelling public fear and confusion. Concerns regarding the transmissibility and long-term effects of the virus on survivors have exacerbated societal stigma towards those who have recovered from COVID-19. This study analyses Chinese media coverage to explore the ways in which COVID-19 survivors are portrayed and how these portrayals may contribute to the broader narrative of stigmatisation.
This study employs content analysis of 440 news articles from four major Chinese media outlets, spanning the period from January 2020 to March 2023. The sample includes two state-sponsored outlets, People's Daily and Global Times, and two market-oriented outlets, Caixin Weekly and Sanlian Lifeweek. By comparing media coverage across these outlets, the research investigates how representations of COVID-19 survivors varied across different media outlets.
Disparities in media portrayals of COVID-19 survivors were found. State-sponsored media, such as People's Daily and Global Times, generally depicted COVID-19 as less severe, downplaying fear and emphasising positive developments. In contrast, both Caixin Weekly and Sanlian Lifeweek frequently reported on cases of recovered individuals testing positive again, with Caixin Weekly offering more in-depth discussions on the potential for survivors to remain contagious. While the negative impacts of COVID-19 on survivors' labour and social capacities were not a major focus in most outlets, these impacts were still present, particularly in People's Daily and Sanlian Lifeweek, which reported more significant negative effects on survivors' social functions. Across both state-sponsored and market-oriented outlets, mixed messages emerged regarding the social acceptance of survivors, with articles simultaneously advocating for social distancing while promoting reintegration. These findings underscore the complexity of media portrayals, revealing a diverse reporting landscape characterised by mixed messages.
This study reveals the presence of conflicting media narratives, which have potentially contributed to the societal stigma surrounding COVID-19 survivors. The mixed messages-simultaneously promoting both fear and acceptance-have exacerbated public confusion and misconceptions. The findings underscore the critical need for clear, consistent, and evidence-based reporting during public health crises to mitigate stigma and enhance the public's understanding of health-related information.
新冠疫情引发了广泛的不确定性，导致信息泛滥，加剧了公众的恐惧和困惑。对病毒传播性及其对康复者长期影响的担忧，加剧了社会对新冠康复者的污名化。本研究分析中国媒体报道，以探究新冠康复者的呈现方式，以及这些呈现如何促成更广泛的污名化叙事。
本研究对2020年1月至2023年3月期间来自中国四大主流媒体的440篇新闻文章进行内容分析。样本包括两家官方媒体《人民日报》和《环球时报》，以及两家市场化媒体《财新周刊》和《三联生活周刊》。通过比较这些媒体的报道，研究调查了不同媒体对新冠康复者的呈现差异。
发现媒体对新冠康复者的呈现存在差异。官方媒体，如《人民日报》和《环球时报》，通常将新冠描述得没那么严重，淡化恐惧并强调积极进展。相比之下，《财新周刊》和《三联生活周刊》都频繁报道康复者再次检测呈阳性的案例，《财新周刊》更深入地探讨了康复者仍具传染性的可能性。虽然新冠对康复者劳动和社会能力的负面影响在大多数媒体中并非主要关注点，但这些影响仍然存在，尤其是在《人民日报》和《三联生活周刊》中，它们报道了对康复者社会功能更显著的负面影响。在官方媒体和市场化媒体中，关于对康复者的社会接纳都出现了矛盾信息，文章在倡导保持社交距离的同时又促进重新融入。这些发现凸显了媒体呈现的复杂性，揭示了一个充满矛盾信息的多元报道格局。
本研究揭示了相互冲突的媒体叙事的存在，这可能导致了围绕新冠康复者的社会污名化。这种矛盾信息——同时引发恐惧和促进接纳——加剧了公众的困惑和误解。研究结果强调，在公共卫生危机期间，迫切需要清晰、一致且基于证据的报道，以减轻污名化并增强公众对健康相关信息的理解。
