A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China

This study examines how major newspapers in South Korea and China portrayed national crisis management during the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative content analysis with qualitative interpretation, this study systematically analyzes news frames and edit...

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Main Authors: Yue Jin, Seongku Hong, Hyunju Kang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-06-01
Series:Journalism and Media
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/6/2/93
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author Yue Jin
Seongku Hong
Hyunju Kang
author_facet Yue Jin
Seongku Hong
Hyunju Kang
author_sort Yue Jin
collection DOAJ
description This study examines how major newspapers in South Korea and China portrayed national crisis management during the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative content analysis with qualitative interpretation, this study systematically analyzes news frames and editorial tones across various phases. The qualitative analysis further clarifies the quantitative results. Editorials from The Chosun Daily, Hankyoreh, People’s Daily, and Ming Pao covering the period from 1 January 2020, to 31 March 2023, were reviewed. The research categorizes the pandemic into three distinct phases: the global spread of COVID-19, vaccine rollout, and living with the virus. It applies three news frames: crisis response, international relations, and responsibility attribution. In the initial phase, most newspapers focused on the crisis response frame, highlighting national mobilization and social solidarity. Notably, The Chosun Daily emphasized the international relations frame with the strongest critical tone. The crisis response frame continued to dominate in the second phase, accompanied by an increasingly critical tone. In the final phase, as the pandemic began to stabilize, the international relations frame significantly declined due to fewer global differences in pandemic responses. The results suggest that the media’s portrayal is influenced by political orientation and approaches to crisis management perspectives.
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spelling doaj-art-067f07cff2744ac187b6f2162e2e22172025-08-20T03:16:22ZengMDPI AGJournalism and Media2673-51722025-06-01629310.3390/journalmedia6020093A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and ChinaYue Jin0Seongku Hong1Hyunju Kang2Department of Media and Communication, College of Social Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Gangwon-do, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Media and Communication, College of Social Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Gangwon-do, Republic of KoreaCollege of Nursing, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Gangwon-do, Republic of KoreaThis study examines how major newspapers in South Korea and China portrayed national crisis management during the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative content analysis with qualitative interpretation, this study systematically analyzes news frames and editorial tones across various phases. The qualitative analysis further clarifies the quantitative results. Editorials from The Chosun Daily, Hankyoreh, People’s Daily, and Ming Pao covering the period from 1 January 2020, to 31 March 2023, were reviewed. The research categorizes the pandemic into three distinct phases: the global spread of COVID-19, vaccine rollout, and living with the virus. It applies three news frames: crisis response, international relations, and responsibility attribution. In the initial phase, most newspapers focused on the crisis response frame, highlighting national mobilization and social solidarity. Notably, The Chosun Daily emphasized the international relations frame with the strongest critical tone. The crisis response frame continued to dominate in the second phase, accompanied by an increasingly critical tone. In the final phase, as the pandemic began to stabilize, the international relations frame significantly declined due to fewer global differences in pandemic responses. The results suggest that the media’s portrayal is influenced by political orientation and approaches to crisis management perspectives.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/6/2/93COVID-19national crisis managementnews frameThe Chosun DailyHankyorehPeople’s Daily
spellingShingle Yue Jin
Seongku Hong
Hyunju Kang
A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
Journalism and Media
COVID-19
national crisis management
news frame
The Chosun Daily
Hankyoreh
People’s Daily
title A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
title_full A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
title_fullStr A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
title_full_unstemmed A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
title_short A Comparative Study of News Framing of COVID-19 Crisis Management in South Korea and China
title_sort comparative study of news framing of covid 19 crisis management in south korea and china
topic COVID-19
national crisis management
news frame
The Chosun Daily
Hankyoreh
People’s Daily
url https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/6/2/93
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