Journal
GERONTOLOGIST
Volume 61, Issue 1, Pages 86-97Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC
DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnaa162
Keywords
COVID-19; Critical discourse analysis; Long-term care; Newspapers
Categories
Funding
- European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant [764632]
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The study found that during the pandemic, residents' voices were replaced by family members, and residential care was portrayed as dangerous, deceptive, and problematic in the news coverage, with blame often assigned to an individual or group based on the political tendency of the newspaper.
Background and Objectives: This study examines the discursive construction of residential care during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in 3 leading American newspapers: The New York Times, USA Today, and The New York Post. Research Design and Methods: A total of 54 news articles between January 21 and May 8, 2020 were identified from the LexisNexis academic database for analysis. The articles were analyzed using both a critical discourse analysis approach and a thematic analytical framework. Results: Findings indicate that residents' voices are excluded and superseded by others, namely their family members. Literary elements were used to portray residential care as shockingly dangerous, deceptive, and problematic. Blame was often assigned to an individual or group according to the political tendency of the newspaper. Discussion and Implications: A cultural model of panic and dishonesty begins to take shape through the COVID-19 pandemic. Fearmongering and the portrayal of residential care as lacking transparency will likely create future mistrust of the industry. The depiction of vulnerability and the illusion of resident inclusion in the news coverage enable paternalistic decision-making and care practices in the name of supposed protection.
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