Manufacture consent for news during the pandemic

The propaganda model, which is presented by Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky, argued that mass media is a propaganda system in the capitalist society in facilitates the interests both of the dominant societal elite and powerful intuitions. At the same time, the ideas of dissent and alternatives are against and suppressed by them, which are coming out through a set of filter systems: 1). Mass media is dominated by small-scale corporations that focus on interests, and the content of story focuses on both profits and attraction of audiences.2). Advertisement is the primary income for mass media. 3). The primary source of news comes from government and corporations 4). Because of self-censorship, media usually surpasses to publish controversial content. 5). The conformity of ideology, which means media tend to report content in the mainstream ideology of contemporary society. In the following part, I will analyse how the model works in the context of the news during the early stage of COVID-19.

In the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the influence of geopolitics, which means China and America were in an embarrassed and hostile relationship during the Trump administration, the virus was described deliberately as the “Chinese virus” or “Wuhan Virus” by some western media. Part of the Western media used appalling and shocking ways to report the origins of the virus, such as the Huanan seafood market and the illegal eating of wild animals. These narratives not only associated the pandemic directly with China but also incited negative public perceptions of the Chinese. Some reports show that during the pandemic, anti-Asian racism, xenophobia, and hate crime were fuelled among Western countries. You also can see the phenomenon within social media such as 4chan, Reddit, and Twitter, there become the hotbeds for extremists, racists, and conspiracists under certain topics.

From the case study, we can find out some aspects that correspond to the propaganda model. At first, the content of media has a very strong tendency to serve politicians. Public perceptions of the virus are constructed by mass media and politicians.  Media report the content selectively to divert the attention of the public to other places, and to cover the incorrect decision towards the pandemic. Second, it exhibits how the media dominated by economic and political benefits reports the story in a way appealing and simplified, to attract audiences and keep engagement. Even if it reinforces the stereotype and negative sentiments about Chinese.

Although we can see the characteristics of the propaganda model, the model also ignores the different voices of other media, and the will of the public –— sometimes the media will call on the public not to demonize the coronavirus and irrational sentiments towards Asians. Sometimes the public is also resistant spontaneously to the content of mass media.

Reference:

1. Laughey, D. (2007). Key Themes in Media Theory. McGraw-Hill Education. http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/westminster/detail.action?docID=332680
2. Zhang, Y. and Trifiro, B. (2022). Who Portrayed It as ‘The Chinese Virus’? An Analysis of the Multiplatform Partisan Framing in U.S. News Coverage About China in the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Communication, [online] 16(1932-8036), p.24. Available at: https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/17916 [Accessed 17 Nov. 2023].
3. Gover AR, Harper SB, Langton L. Anti-Asian Hate Crime During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring the Reproduction of Inequality. Am J Crim Justice. 2020;45(4):647-667. doi: 10.1007/s12103-020-09545-1. Epub 2020 Jul 7. PMID: 32837171; PMCID: PMC7364747.