Reporting the Unknown: How Reporters in the Philippines Cover COVID-19

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, media development organisations around the rushed to support journalists in combating disinformation around the virus by putting together tipsheets, guides, and other resources. In this article, Imelda Abano, Earth Journalism Network (EJN)'s Content Coordinator for the Philippines and president of the Philippines Network of Environmental Journalists, culls out some tips on how the media can focus its COVID-19 coverage in a way that is relevant, accurate, and informative.

A view from the Philippines: On March 21 2020, the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) in the Philippines issued a call for media solidarity on COVID-19, urging journalists and media outlets to consolidate their efforts to verify and call out mis- or dis-information and to investigate any misuse of funds or resources. In that country, as in others, journalists in quarantine areas (e.g., in Metro Manila) have to adapt their ways of doing journalism, such as by looking for ways to reach sources through online interviews and using other social media networks while working from home.

CMFR suggests that timely information, guidelines, and expert views should be shared by news organizations, giving credit as necessary, to extend the reach of these fact-based reports. The COVID-19 crisis calls for reporting through a public health lens, with a particular focus on epidemiology, CMFR said. The media must help the public understand the course of the epidemic and what approaches can help ease the crisis. Other recommendations Abano offers, citing other journalists:

• Use clear language, facts to prevent panic - Report data fully, and explain what each number means; keep the state of a country's healthcare system and the strengths and flaws of the delivery of medicals services in mind when evaluating information and assessing primary health care facilities; and avoid using language that scares people, such as plague or apocalypse, or that provokes hate or xenophobia, such as "the Chinese virus".
• Be precise, even if it takes time - Yvonne Chua, a veteran journalist and journalism professor at the University of the Philippines, said newsrooms need to quickly work to build the understanding of locals journalists so they can cover this crisis most effectively. To this end, Internews supported the production of three short videos (one example is below) on disinformation surrounding COVID-19 based on the fact-checking research of VERA Files. It also produced a series of explainers debunking rumours and myths circulating around the pandemic. Gaea Cabico, a reporter at the Philippine Star Online, said fact-checking is particularly important at this time. She advises explaining why a claim or theory is false and carefully crafting headlines with the understanding that people often don't read the full story.
• Collaborate - Abano provides several examples, including the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ)'s global health crisis reporting forum via Facebook, a space for journalists around the world to connect with health experts, resources, and fellow journalists on all things regarding COVID-19. In the Philippines, VERA Files and news organisations such as Rappler are part of a collaborative project on debunking false information on COVID-19 run by the Poynter Institute's International Fact-Checking Network. Collaboration extends to awareness-raising efforts, too; use of common hashtags across newsrooms (e.g., in the Philippines: #COVID19PH, #coronavirus, #COVID19Quarantine, #MMQuarantine, #ReliefPH, #CoronaVirusFacts) can make information easier to find.
• Use social media to amplify the truth - Mariejo Ramos, a reporter at the Philippine Daily Inquirer, said journalists can use these platforms to dispute false claims, raise discourse, and challenge falsehoods accompanied with links to accurate news articles and official sources of data. Including context in every story is also important, she said.
• Think about packaging - Chua (quoted above) recommended creating more mobile-friendly materials, especially now that the use of smartphones is widespread across the Philippines. She also advised journalists to do more explainers in layman's language, using visuals to explain complex topics, hosting webinars on COVID-19, and creating resource pages online. Other recommendations: Think about how stories can gain the public's attention on social media, how to make headlines clear and accurate, how to make stories more shareable and easier to consume, and how use of data can make COVID-19 stories more engaging and relevant.
• Put safety first and foremost - For example, many interviews can be done through phone or video calls. For local journalists who are covering their communities, distancing can be harder.
• Let local journalism shine - Reporters from community media outlets can look out for solutions-focused stories by seeing how communities are responding and including the voices of the underprivileged, covering best practices, and exploring how local governments are responding. Carolyn Arguillas, editor of Mindanews in the southern Philippines, said they are working to organise a COVID-19 reporting seminar for provincial journalists to strengthen their health reporting skills.