Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34574465›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2021

Media Representations of Science during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Analysis of News and Social Media on the Island of Ireland.

Cliodhna O'Connor, Nicola O'Connell, Emma Burke, Ann Nolan, Martin Dempster, Christopher D Graham, Gail Nicolson, Joseph Barry, Gabriel Scally, Philip Crowley and 3 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
5.3field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.

Cliodhna O'ConnorSchool of Psychology, University College Dublin, D04 Dublin, Ireland.ORCID 0000-0001-8134-075X
Nicola O'ConnellDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Emma BurkeDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Ann NolanTrinity Centre for Global Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Martin DempsterSchool of Psychology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 5BN, UK.
Christopher D GrahamSchool of Psychology, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 5BN, UK.
Gail NicolsonDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.ORCID 0000-0002-5580-8635
Joseph BarryDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Gabriel ScallySchool of Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1QU, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-6944-6076
Philip CrowleyQuality Improvement, Health Service Executive, D08 Dublin, Ireland.
Lina ZgagaDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Luke MatherDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Catherine D DarkerDiscipline of Public Health and Primary Care, Institute of Population Health, Trinity College Dublin, D02 Dublin, Ireland.
Trinity College Dublin · IEQueen's University Belfast · GBHealth Service Executive · IEUniversity College Dublin · IEUniversity of Bristol · GB

Funding

Health Research Board COV19-2020-039
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

COVID-19 is arguably the most critical science communication challenge of a generation, yet comes in the wake of a purported populist turn against scientific expertise in western societies. This study advances understanding of science-society relations during the COVID-19 pandemic by analysing how science was represented in news and social media coverage of COVID-19 on the island of Ireland. Thematic analysis was performed on a dataset comprising 952 news articles and 603 tweets published between 1 January and 31 May 2020. Three themes characterised the range of meanings attached to science: 'Defining science: Its subjects, practice and process', 'Relating to science: Between veneration and suspicion' and 'Using science: As solution, policy and rhetoric'. The analysis suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic represented a platform to highlight the value, philosophy, process and day-to-day activity of scientific research. However, the study also identified risks the pandemic might pose to science communication, including feeding public alienation by disparaging lay understandings, reinforcing stereotypical images of scientists, and amplifying the politicisation of scientific statements.

Indexed as

COVID-19Social MediaHumansIrelandPandemicsSARS-CoV-2coronavirusCOVID-19news medianewspaperspandemicqualitativesciencesocial mediaTwitter

Identifiers

PMID34574465
PMCPMC8470699
OpenAlexW3199591975

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.