Health reporters leading the way during COVID-19

There was no soft re-entry for Jennifer Yang (RSJ ’08) as she returned to the newsroom after a year on maternity leave. Suddenly the Toronto Star's global health reporter was juggling a newborn alongside the world's biggest story - the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The reporter, who covered Ebola on the ground in Sierra Leone, knew that COVID-19 was going to be a big story. She pitched covering it full-time upon her return, a year (and a day) after her daughter was born. 

“Once it became apparent that this was going to be a pandemic and the biggest story that was going to need all hands on deck, they basically said ‘yes,’” said Yang, who even considered returning to work early.

Yang is just one of many health reporters bringing important information about the global pandemic to the public, which has infected more than 3 million people worldwide (external link) . Alongside a high-stakes news cycle, health reporters are helping their colleagues of other beats learn how to cover COVID-19 from their own homes.

Challenges

Canada’s public health officers have become household names, as they show up day after day in media conferences. Yang said that the biggest difference from reporting on Ebola is the level of interest from home and the constant stream of new information. 

“The pace of news has just been unlike anything I've ever experienced,” said Yang. “You'll start the day with a story in mind and by two o'clock, something's changed.”

It’s the flow of information as well as misinformation that Kat Eschner (RSJ ’16), a freelance journalist who focuses on science and health, said is one of the biggest challenges for journalists.

“I spend a lot of time that I could actually be reporting on what’s happening, explaining to people why what they heard isn’t true,” said Eschner.

Reaching out to experts who can disseminate that information also takes a lot of work. Yang has heard about experts who say that they are getting over a hundred media requests a day.

“While it’s tricker to get responses from sources for health stories, as they’re busier than ever, I also feel so much more grateful when they take the time to speak with me,” said Wency Leung (RSJ ’02). 

Leung typically reports on brain health and epidemiology for The Globe and Mail, so when the entire Globe health team switched to focus on COVID-19, it was a bit of an adjustment for her. She has found that despite working from home, the team is more in touch than ever.

“This is a big health story… everybody in all different sections have sort of jumped in because this virus is affecting everything from business to politics to social life,” she said.

Reporting on the human aspect behind COVID-19 can be difficult when the situation is so raw. Yang reached out to a woman who lost someone and was battling the illness herself. She was unable to get the interview.

“It's very understandable that it's hard for someone like that at that moment in their life,” she said. “So I just sort of leave it for now and think about circling back in the future at some point.”

Separating work from personal life at home

The ability to shut off thinking about the pandemic is challenging for many, but especially for journalists on the beat.

“I’m usually pretty good at leaving my work at my desk, but I’m finding this particularly hard,” said Eschner. “This is a story I’m living as well as writing about, and that has been somewhat psychologically challenging for sure.” 

Although Yang is happy to spend more time with her baby, it is hard to tell herself not to leave the room when she hears crying, but Yang is thankful that her husband is there.

“I've been starting my day at 8:30(am) and finishing it at 9:30, 10(pm) on many days and working Saturdays or Sundays, because it's just so much harder to draw a boundary around your work life when it's in your house,” said Yang.

While Yang is jumping into pandemic reporting, Vox’s senior health correspondent Julia Belluz (RSJ ’07) is taking her leave after having a healthy baby boy in Vienna on March 17.

She wrote an autobiographical article (external link)  and contributed to a Vox podcast (external link)  about her decision to be induced five days early from her due date. Like the news, everything was changing quicker than ever before in Austria’s healthcare system.

Belluz said that COVID-19 isn’t like any other health topic she has covered in the past.

“This is a once in a century event — probably the biggest news story any of us will cover — and will have long-lasting repercussions on health,” she said in an email.

Vital coverage that won’t be forgotten

Almost all news coverage is on COVID-19 nowadays, leading some people to tune out. But health reporters are bringing vital coverage to those stuck at home or considered essential workers.

“I don’t think journalists over-hyped or over-reported this threat,” said Belluz. “If anything, journalists didn’t draw enough attention to the potential extent of COVID-19’s wrath early enough.”

Leung agrees.

“I think the Canadian media has done a good job of not going into panic mode, not scaring people and being as informative and transparent as possible about what is not known,” she said.

Eschner said that journalists are doing a good job reporting on the pandemic, under the circumstances. However, she would like to see more coverage of other significant issues, such as the climate crisis or the return of carding laws for COVID-19 surveillance measures in Toronto. 

Yang hopes that newsrooms and the public will appreciate the importance of health reporters more after the crisis.

“The people who've been doing this for the longest are the ones who are everyone's turning to now for guidance and expertise,” she said. “Because it is so hard to jump into this subject cold… there's a lot you just have to understand.”

—With files from Chelsey Gould