Ebola Crisis:a Study Of The Production Mechanism Of Discourse Power

Public health crisis is a threaten to public health, the country’s political and social stability. Ebola crisis, a recent global public health emergency, creates a scenario full of disaster death, evoking people’s solidarity and struggle. In the context of globalization, the article expands the area of the limitations of existing crisis communication research, integrating Crisis Communication theory with Discourse Power theory. It considers that discourse of Ebola crisis is constructed by official discourse, media discourse and public discourse. This study analyzes the discourse of Ebola crisis, and investigates both internal discourse production and external discourse competition of countries and organizations.The article focus on case study, content analysis and discourse analysis, which takes the points-the total structure. From chapter 2 to chapter 5, it analyzes the Ebola crisis in four main discourses and in consideration of official discourse, media discourse and public discourse.Research Findings as follows:First, during Ebola crisis, the characteristics of West Africa presented marginalization,to some extent,and lost it voices, highlighted the crisis and called for support. The crisis response in West Africa were dominated by external force. In the views of World Health Organization, Guinea was active cooperation, while Sierra Leone was widely criticized. Liberia showed to highly dependent on the United States, and was praised for it. In the meantime, there was a struggle of discourse in West African internal:In official discourse,the location for the crisis was de-emphasize; In public discourse, citizens showed violent resistance and cooperation; The media discourse play a role of propaganda and education.Second, World Health Organization exerted an influence on other countries, with the characteristic of Initiating a cooperation, etiological analysis and advocacy governance. To establish agenda setting and the voice, WHO emphasized its contribution. Ebola Outbreak and Ebola Diaries became its characteristic and framework changed from conflict to cooperation. As discourse type of advocate governance in Ebola crisis, WHO had some certain bias, ignoring of oriental.Third, Ebola Discourse in the United States presented the obvious characteristics of individualism and encouraging professional risk.In official discourse.Posters compared the poverty and underdeveloped in West Africa with advanced developed in western; Popular science mobilization called on "to be hero". As for media discourse and public discourse in the US, they paid close attention to the Ebola threat to domestic. The contents, technical and transmission channel of Media consolidated the official discourse intention with abundant connotation. New and professional media Healthmap successfully alarm Ebola crisis; Traditional media expertly began data journalism; Tabloid focused in-depth reports on personal story; Front photos created of a terror atmosphere during Ebola crisis. In addition, the advocation of individualism can be seen from whether the dispute of public and expert discourse in literary works or the issue change in social media as well as NIMBY arising.Fourth, Deep concern and international support were the characteristics of the People’s Republic of China. In official words, "Ebola" was expressed as "Ebola Yiqing (epidemic) ",which earned a strong traditional color regarding the naming methods. While an image of responsible, equal and friendly country was shown through internal and external frameworks in China’s official discourse. Internal framework included:denial discourse strategy and simulation exercise discursive action; external framework included:equal and friendly assistance to African countries. China’s media discourse was affected deeply by official discourse. As a result, issues were relatively concentrated and the contents were also homogeneous, and data news in China’s media began a new trend. Different from official and media discourse, a risk amplification of Ebola was seen in public discourse in China. On the one hand, compared to SARS, the public were more worried about Ebola; on the other hand, network opinion began to demonize Ebola.Last, the discourse of different countries and organizations varies from each other in Ebola crisis, which reflects the discourse power contention in international society. The discourse subject, content, communication channel and object form the communication force, which has an influence to the production mechanism of Discourse Power. Developed countries have shown the great communication skills and strategies to China to compete for the discourse right in the international community.