The spreading of Covid-19 around the world has brought about unprecedented challenges for government messaging. Along with daily death tolls and grim stories of economic and social disruption, governments have sought to proactively shape public expectations and actions through various public health restrictions – all the while providing novel support programs for citizens, non-profits, and businesses.
Since the outset of the pandemic, a key distinction in public sector voices is that of political versus professional (i.e. elected officials and especially Ministers, and appointed officials, especially Chief Medical Officers). Whereas the former realm is ultimately responsible for the overarching responses of each government, the latter realm not only informs internal political discussions but has also emerged as a separate, external source of public advice and guidance predicated upon science and objectivity.
Alignment matters. For instance, whereas BC Government daily media briefings have typically featured shared appearances by the Minister of Health and Chief Medical Officer, the Premier of Ontario and the Province’s Chief Medical Officer have instead held separate press briefings (often with additional media events by regional officials, especially within and around the Greater Toronto Area). While the reasoning for Ontario’s Covid struggles is more complex than fragmented government messaging, journalistic criticism and public frustration have been notably higher here than in BC.
The unified BC example is tied to another key feature of the Covid media landscape, namely the predominance of television and radio. Canadian surveys reveal a strong reliance on traditional media (versus social media) and a high correlation between news consumption and intentions to be vaccinated, implying trust in government messaging and scientific advice. One such survey undertaken by Wunderman Thompson found that just 12 percent of Canadians have relied exclusively on online sources for information, with a notable increase, across all age cohorts, in news consumption through traditional media channels.
Such trends are somewhat surprising given the fear that misinformation driven by social media would potentially overwhelm mainstream media and erode public confidence: the WHO has raised concerns about an ‘infodemic’ and there are plenty of conspiracies online. Yet with some exceptions, what we have mainly relied upon in Canada is a traditional media apparatus rooted in scientific expertise – closely aligned with political messaging and incumbent politicians (who have thus far benefitted electorally). By contrast, the US cleavage between former President Trump and federal medical officials (notably Anthony Fauci) greatly complicated initial Covid responses, at least until the Biden Administration’s own deference to science and an accelerated vaccine rollout.
Despite the prominence of traditional media thus far, however, there are two important questions that will shape political debate, societal resilience, and collective recovery efforts: first, can governments mitigate the potential threats stemming from even a minority social media presence driven by nefarious intentions; and secondly, are the virtues of traditional media and government communications sufficient not only for immediate public health responses but also as a basis for collective learning and innovative governance going forward?
The first question portends a new world order far less orderly. As hostile actors seed Covid misinformation and wider discontent via social media platforms, new public safety concerns arise. In the US, for example, the Head of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines pointed to Covid-19 as a driver of a new and ‘looming disequilibrium between existing and future challenges’. In Canada, the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians is similarly examining new security threats tied to the ongoing pandemic.
With regards to the second question – and societal adaptation, there is a significant risk that traditional media and government information structures may stunt community outreach and deliberation, especially at the local level (see April Lindgren’s insightful commentary in IRPP”s Policy Options entitled, ‘Local News is Being Decimated during one its most important moments’). Research by the Samara Centre for Democracy on the limited role of Provincial legislatures during the pandemic further underscores this risk.
In sum, how we learn to live with Covid depends greatly upon our evolving media universe, and how governments both communicate and engage with the public. Across both realms, the importance of digital platforms and open and inclusive dialogue cannot be under-estimated.
