Sosyal Bilimler ve Sağlık Bülteni

Özgün Makale

No. 11 (2024)

Public Reaction to COVID-19 Case Number Announcement: A Content Analysis of Twitter Posts

Submitted
August 13, 2024
Published
2024-08-30
Versions

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been various debates regarding the accuracy and transparency of the information conveyed to the public in Türkiye. Specifically, the reported case numbers have become the focal point of these discussions. In response to criticisms, Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca stated in an announcement on November 25, 2020, that all cases would be included in the daily report. The aim of this study is to analyze the reactions of Twitter users to Minister Koca's announcement, in order to understand the public perception.

 

Tweets shared with the hashtag #vakasayısı during the 24-hour period following Fahrettin Koca's announcement at 20:15 on November 25, 2020, were included in the study. The tweets were coded separately by two researchers using content analysis methods, and the codes generated were reviewed by four researchers to identify themes. Quantitative analyses were conducted after excluding repeated tweets.

 

A total of 38,412 tweets were collected in the study. Retweets (n=29,491) were excluded, and the remaining 8,921 tweets were analyzed qualitatively. After removing duplicate tweets, quantitative analyses were performed on 8,624 tweets. The evaluation of the tweets revealed themes such as "distrust," "lies," "deception," "delay," and "public demands." Fahrettin Koca, Ekrem İmamoğlu, and Devlet Bahçeli were the most mentioned individuals, while the Ministry of Health and the Turkish Medical Association were the most mentioned institutions. It was also observed that there were numerous tweets containing profanity and insults. Tweets supporting Minister Koca's statement were more focused on individual precautions taken by citizens.

 

In conclusion, concrete events like the change in the definition of case numbers have led to diverse opinions in society, revealing the public's distrust. The findings of this study emphasize the need for more transparent and open communication in pandemic management. A lack of information or misinformation can hinder the public's ability to make informed decisions, which can pose serious risks to public health.

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