Open AccessCOVID‑19 as an Informational Phenomenon: Results of a Media Analytical Study of Response of Internet Audience to Pandemic in the USA
Author(s) -
Olga Yarmak,
V. I. Barybina
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
gumanitarnye nauki. vestnik finansovogo universiteta/gumanitarnye nauki
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2619-1482
pISSN - 2226-7867
DOI - 10.26794/2226-7867-2021-11-5-14-20
Subject(s) - social distance , pandemic , social media , the internet , phenomenon , internet privacy , sociology , public health , public relations , political science , covid-19 , medicine , computer science , world wide web , physics , nursing , disease , pathology , quantum mechanics , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law
The article presents the results of a media analytical study of the American Internet audience’s response to the spreading coronavirus pandemic. In particular, it concerns the cybermetric analysis of social media, which made it possible to identify the formed ambiguity in the assessments by American Internet users of events related to the coronavirus pandemic and analyse the process of constructing the coronavirus as an informational phenomenon. The epidemiological crisis has shaped new information trends in the geolocation of the virus, social distancing, hygiene and the use of individual types of protection, and the spread of information fakes. The study confirmed the thesis that social media can and should be used to support public health measures. Digital technologies help to overcome social constraints during mass quarantines and provide support for mental health, the formation of social solidarity in a society in a situation of social distancing and isolation.