Thematic analysis and use of journalistic sources in the COVID-19 crisis: The New York Times, El Universal, and El País Articles uri icon

publication date

  • July 2022

start page

  • 3801

end page

  • 3821

volume

  • 16

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 1932-8036

abstract

  • The present research analyzes topics addressed in relation to COVID-19 and the use of
    journalistic sources at the beginning of the pandemic, an exceptional situation for
    newsrooms in which press work routines were substantially modified. For this purpose, a
    comparative study has been carried out on three leading newspapers: The New York Times
    (United States), El Universal (Mexico), and El País (Spain). A content analysis of 185 cover
    pages has revealed that The New York Times and El País focused primarily on the social
    consequences of the pandemic, while El Universal concentrated on the disease itself. The
    three newspapers coincide in using a predominance of institutional sources, with
    government ones being dominant. Sources actively sought by the journalists themselves
    were in the second position, with experts predominating. News agency information and
    confidential sources were not significant.

keywords

  • journalism; sources; the new york times; el universal; el país; covid-19