The Listening Post

Coronavirus communicators: Path-breaking pandemic journalism

In this special we track media projects pushing boundaries of COVID-19 coverage, from China to Europe and the Americas.

In our non-stop coverage of the media side of the coronavirus pandemic over the past few months, we have trained our lens on its more troubling aspects: From misinformation being spread by citizens, journalists and governments alike to the war of narratives being waged by great powers. 

But COVID-19 has also brought out the best in the fourth estate: People who are producing vital coverage, sometimes designed and delivered in new ways to help us understand a story laden with complexities.

In this special edition of The Listening Post, we track four path-breaking media projects from four different parts of the world, each of them using a different medium. 

From the United States and Brazil – countries whose presidents have repeatedly misinformed their electorates – Flo Phillips and Johanna Hoes hear from two medical experts-turned-broadcasters respectively; one through his podcast, the other over YouTube.

Later in the episode Daniel Turi takes us to Europe – virtually, of course – and a media aggregator that bypasses Silicon Valley’s advertising-driven algorithms and onto smart COVID-19 analysis you might otherwise miss.

But Meenakshi Ravi starts the programme where the coronavirus story began, in China, where a Beijing-based magazine is proving that, even with the authorities ready to pounce, it can produce valuable journalism on the biggest news story of our time.

Contributors: 

Zhan Zhang – research fellow, China Media Observatory, Universita della Svizzera italiana

Abdul El-Sayed – creator and host, America Dissected and author, Healing Politics: A Doctor’s Journey Into the Heart of our Political Epidemic

Atila Iamarino – science communicator and co-host, Nerdologia

Evgeny Morozov – creator, The Syllabus

Produced by: Meenakshi Ravi, Flo Phillips, Daniel Turi and Ryan Kohls