Media Framing and COVID-19 Infodemic in News Headlines of Indonesian Online Newspapers

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify how newspaper headlines framed the COVID-19 infodemic in Indonesia. This study collected headlines from Republika.co.id, an influential national online mass media with a wide coverage of news readers. Data were collected by tracing news portals directly about the COVID-19 infodemic published from January 1 to March 31, 2021. This study used framing analysis to classify the news frames displayed on Covid 19 news titles in Indonesian newspapers. The results showed that there were 1,831 headlines framing the Covid 19 infodemic in the Republika.co.id newspaper in Indonesia. There are at least five frames used for COVID-19, they were (1) public health, (2) policy, (3) economic, (4) political, and (5) cultural and religious. The public health frame uses approximately 79.14 percent of the total news, which focused on the causes, effects, spread, and number of victims, as well as measures to overcome the COVID-19 outbreak. This frame showed the trend of news that still revolves around the development of the number of COVID-19 patients to news about COVID-19 vaccinations carried out throughout Indonesia, and represents the government's efforts to ensure public health and reduce public concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. Implications for research and practice included recognizing the impact of media framing on public perceptions and responses during the pandemic, and recommendations involved collaborative efforts between policymakers and media to develop effective communication strategies and media literacy programs to combat misinformation. Limitations includes the focus on a single media source, necessitating broader media analysis for comprehensive insights.