An Analysis Of Media Agenda Setting In The Normal Period Of COVID-19

Agenda setting theory has exerted extensive and profound influence on the field of journalism and communication.It is the most classic and important theory in the field of journalism and communication.As a public health emergency with the biggest impact on China since the founding of the People’s Republic of China,the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic has lasted for more than three years.Under the background of normalization,how to guide public opinion through agenda setting is an important issue for the media.During the period when the COVID-19 epidemic became normal,People’s Daily continued to release relevant reports on its wechat account and actively set the agenda.People’s Daily is the eyes,ears and mouthpiece of the Party and the government.When major public health emergencies occur in the country,People’s Daily takes the initiative to take responsibility,exerting its strong communication power and influence,which reflects the mission and responsibility of the wechat official account of People’s Daily as a media.In this paper,content analysis method,text analysis method and questionnaire survey are adopted.Taking the relevant reports on the novel coronavirus epidemic in the wechat official account of People’s Daily from April 29,2020 to April 29,2022 as research samples,the contents of 1322 news reports are statistically analyzed.This paper studies the characteristics,path,role and effect of the agenda setting of People’s Daily’s wechat official account during the period of normalizing COVID-19,and comprehensively discusses the agenda setting situation of People’s Daily’s wechat official account during the period of normalizing COVID-19.Finally,in light of the latest development situation of the epidemic,some thoughts on the direction of optimizing the media agenda setting in the future are put forward.A study of the reports of People’s Daily’s wechat official account during the period of normalizing the COVID-19 epidemic found that the wechat official account of People’s Daily has carried out positive and active agenda setting,taking the initiative to set relevant topics on the basis of continuous reporting,and developed phased reporting strategies to take into account multiple topics.Secondly,it has comprehensively answered questions and concerns of the public and actively responded to their concerns.The wechat official account of People’s Daily attaches importance to the feelings of the general public,demonstrating the responsibility andhumanistic care of mainstream media.People’s Daily’s wechat official account used a variety of reporting methods during the normal period of COVID-19,including long graphics,data news and short videos,to present more comprehensive topics.At the same time,on the basis of rational authority,emotional expression is resorted to to dispel public anxiety,guide social rational thinking,and resolve social risks.It plays a continuous role in providing facts,guiding the public agenda and carrying out science popularization education,and influences the public in cognition,attitude and behavior,realizing the transfer of important media agenda to the public agenda.After the release of the "New Ten Measures" for the prevention and control of COVID-19,the agenda setting of People’s Daily’s wechat official account should also be changed according to The Times.It can better enhance its ability to set the agenda in the normal period by adjusting the agenda setting strategy,strengthening the orientation of topics for popular science,and promoting media integration,and continue to give full play to the public opinion guidance of mainstream media.