Media in the Time of Covid-19 Outbreaks in 2020 and 2021: A Comparative Analysis of News Coverage on Stigma and Discrimination

Abstract

The article provides a sequential account of the newspaper
coverage that looks at how two Bangladeshi national dailies
reported stigma and discrimination related incidents when the
pandemic upsurged; and also presents a comparative analysis
of the news coverage. In order to examine the key issues
and focuses, news items which mostly contain the elements
attached to social stigma and discrimination were taken.
In addition, the patterns of coverage are substantiated with
the findings of thematic content analysis of the stories that
appeared in the online versions of the two newspapers in the
selected periods. The news coverage reveals varying pattern
of stigmatization in the first outbreak in 2020 that reflects
how the community treated the foreign returnees and people
suspected of having Covid-19 infection. The newspapers also
reported the issues concerning denial of burial to those who
died of Covid-19, and violation of health rights at different
levels. But in the second outbreak in 2021, news stories did
not report elements of stigmatization as the key focus. It also
appears that the newspapers’ focus on Covid-19 shifted over
time, and coverage of each period was identified with new
issues and priorities.