Here’s a fascinating look at how the media will play a major role in the upcoming health reform efforts.
The public will rely on the on media to disseminate health policy information in order to obtain informed opinions. The problem is, health policy is dry, and rarely results in attention-grabbing news. This is especially relevant as many newspapers are on the verge of bankruptcy and need every reader they can get.
Niko Karvounis writes that “the media doesn’t seem all that ready, or willing, to cover [health policy] appropriately,” and that in an effort to boost readership, “we may again see the media turn to its favorite sport””calling the political horse race.”
The media has the undeniable power to shape narratives. And in the end, public perception will trump policy details. The major players of health reform realize this, and will continue to jockey for position in order to woo the media to put their spin on the reform proceedings.
Related posts:
- Odds on health reform
- Patients still trust their doctors, and how that can influence health reform
- Health care reform: Democracy as an impediment?
- 10 health reform posts you may have missed
- Talking health care reform and social media in medicine
- The media influence on patients and medical stories
- Should a public plan option be part of any health reform initiative?
{ 2 comments }
The media is much more interested in drumming up demand for questionable procedures and reporting sob stories.
I believe health reform would benefit greatly if the “media” would get bored with it and move on.
It will be endless boring details that will need to be looked at in totality and not as a sliced and diced headline designed to arouse reader emotions.
I can’t recall any major policy issue discussed within mainstream press that lead to astounding and positive changes. There are certainly examples of remarkable coverage, but they are isolates.
The coverage of reform, for instance, will likely be reduced to highlighting the polar opposites: free marketers versus universal healthcare socialists. The nuances and complexities of the full spectrum of healthcare will not be covered in any sufficiently thorough manner.
I hope I’m wrong. Maybe mainstream media coverage of healthcare in the next few years will be a startling departure from the current trend towards the overstimulation of our basest emotions. We shall see.
In the meantime, I suggest that we (you, other medical bloggers, and others) keep fueling the discussions online.
**A question to follow up to your excellent query:
Healthcare should be the leader in online social media. Why isn’t it?
Comments on this entry are closed.