Press coverage of HIV and health issues in PNG’s Post-Courier, 2007-2017

Trevor Cullen

doi:10.24135/pjr.v25i1and2.442

Trevor Cullen Edith Cowan University, Perth

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v25i1and2.442

Keywords: content analysis, diabetes, health journalism, HIV/AIDS, malaria, newspapers, Papua New Guinea, Post-Courier

Abstract

The aim of this research article was to discover, using the Factiva database, how frequently Papua New Guinea’s Post-Courier, one of the largest selling newspapers in the Pacific, covered prominent health issues namely HIV, malaria and diabetes between 2007 and 2017. Also, it tries to determine if there was a discernible pattern in the number of articles and content with previous studies on health coverage, in this case HIV, from 1987-2007. As Factiva did not hold any archives for PNG’s other major newspaper—The National—it was excluded from this analysis. While there are marked similarities with earlier studies, the dramatic decline of health stories from 2013 onwards is a cause for concern.

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Author Biography

Trevor Cullen, Edith Cowan University, Perth

Professor Trevor Cullen is Head of Journalism and Director of CREATEC Research Centre at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia.

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