公共衛生危機中政府與媒體如何共舞：檢視產生不實新聞的影響因素

Abstract

新聞媒體是向公眾傳遞健康和醫藥相關新聞的重要載具，然而媒體在報導與政府有關的公共衛生新聞時，特別是疾病管制局的報導，卻被批評報導不實，且無法在危機中傳遞正確訊息。在考慮到醫藥記者應將正確性放在第一順位之前，我們認為應該先試問新聞不正確如何發生、是否消息來源本身有錯、記者是否誤解新聞中的科學、何為影響公共衛生新聞的關鍵因素等。本研究中，我們以疾管局的不實報導為例，透過質性研究的方式，訪談線上記者、媒體主管、新聞、法律、公衛學者和公關專業人士，試圖找出不實新聞如何產生，並檢視記者和疾管局官員在新聞定義上的差距，我們發現記者尋找新聞性，官員卻認為科學才是重點。這種差距進一步惡化兩方關係，並造成更多不實新聞。本研究認為政府作為新聞消息來源之一，應該要在危機發生時積極主動提供訊息•即使沒有任何危機出現，政府官員也應該經常提供記者可報導的新聞素材，使得政府機構能夠擁有更多正面的媒體曝光，如此一來，政府機構就能夠在公眾心中建立具可信度和信賴感的形象。

News media are important vehicles for disseminating news on health and medicine to the public. However, news reports on health in Taiwan related to the government, especially about CDC, have been criticized for inaccuracies during public health crises. How do inaccuracies arise? This is the question we shall ask, considering that health journalists must put accurate reporting on the top priority. Were their sources in error? Was the science in the news misinterpreted? What are the key influences of the public health news reports? In the present study, we focused the factors that caused news inaccuracies about CDC. Qualitative interviews with interviewees, including on-beat reporters, media decision makers, professors in journalism, law, and public health, and PR practitioners were conducted to figure out why inaccuracies arose in crises and illustrated the gap of the definition of news between the journalists and the CDC officials. It was found that the journalists sought for news values whereas the officials emphasized on science. This gap further deteriorated the relationship between the two parties, and then caused more inaccuracies. We proposed that the government, as one of the news sources, should provide information proactively during crises. Even when there were no crises, the officials should provide news materials to the reporters regularly so that the institute will have a better chance for a positive media exposure so as to form a public image of being credible and trustworthy.