The Daily Donna

By Donna Baeck Most of the news coverage on the coronavirus is usually breaking news or updates about the virus. However, some articles have been focusing on the individuals directly impacted by the virus. One strong example is a New York Times article titled, "Two Women Fell Sick From the Coronavirus. One Survived."  that was published on March 13. This story focused on two health care professionals, Deng Danjing and Xia Sisi, who were working in the frontlines of the outbreak in Wuhan. Ms. Deng, a nurse, and Dr. Xia, a gastroenterologist, were both infected with the coronavirus but had very different outcomes. The writer does a good job of giving a brief introduction of Ms. Deng and Dr. Xia. The first paragraph talks about their family backgrounds and hobbies. In breaking news coverage, coronavirus victims are usually just included in a total number of positive cases. This NYT article puts a name and face to those who are affected and helps the readers to realize the ...

By Donna Baeck North Korea launched two test missiles into the sea off the coast of Japan on Sunday morning, according to the Associated Press. CNN reported the missile had landed outside Japan's Exclusive Economic zone, which is about 200 miles away from Japan's shores. This was the sixth test missile North Korea has launched in the past month amid the coronavirus outbreak. Kim Jong-Un, "wants to show he rules in a normal way amid the coronavirus (pandemic) and his latest weapons tests were aimed at rallying unity internally, not launching a threat externally," said Kim Dong-Yub, an analyst at Seoul's institute for Far Eastern Studies. The Associated Press reported North Korea has started firing the test missiles and artillery shells into the sea in order to strengthen its military capability because of the deadlocked nuclear talks with the U.S. In 2019, Kim warned the U.S. it had until the end of the year to restart the denuclearization talks, accordi...

By Donna Baeck President Trump signed a historic $2 trillion emergency bill at the Oval Office on Friday afternoon to provide relief during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Washington Post.  The bill is the largest emergency aid package in U.S. history. It promises to deliver direct financial assistance to American workers, small businesses and health care facilities, said CNN. "This will deliver urgently needed relief to our nation's families, workers and businesses. And that's what this is all about," Trump said during the signing ceremony. The pandemic pressed a major pause-button on the country's economy, causing 3.3 million workers to file for unemployment benefits last week, said the Washington Post. CNN reported the bill authorizes the Internal Revenue Service to send direct payments of $1,200 each to individuals who earn $75,000 in adjusted gross income or less. Married couples earning up to $150,000 will receive $2,400 and an additional $5...

By Donna Baeck As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across Europe and the United States, China is supplying millions of masks and other medical supplies to countries in desperate need, according to ABC News. ABC News reported China has sent 100,000 testing kits to the Philippines, gloves and protective gear to Liberia and will send more than ten flights with millions of masks and supplies to the Czech Republic this week. China is hoping the aid will help the world understand the difficulty in controlling a virus and soften the criticism surrounding the Chinese government. "The Chinese government's failures...will be less harshly viewed in light of the failures of other governments to respond effectively as well," said Julian Ku, a law professor at Hofstra University. Groups in China like the Chinese Red Cross are also helping. On March 12, 30 tons of medical equipment and nine Chinese medical staff members were sent to Rome to help control the virus, ac...

By Donna Baeck The CNN article I read covered a press conference that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, announced an order for all nonessential New York workers to stay home in response to the coronavirus pandemic. This means there could be civil fines and mandatory closures for business that fail to follow the new order. CNN most likely covered this press conference mainly because of news values like impact and timeliness. The news value of impact asks, 'does this story matter to readers?' and 'will it have an effect on their lives?'. This press conference makes an obvious direct impact on New Yorkers reading the article. Especially during the coronavirus, many news articles are discussing new regulations that are limiting civilians from going out and practice social distancing. Owners of restaurants and businesses are worried about the economy and losing their jobs as more restrictions are put in place. The news value of timeliness is crucial in competition. Thousands...

By Donna Baeck Dr. Anthony Fauci expressed his concerns about a malaria drug that Trump said could be highly effective in treating the coronavirus during a White House briefing on Friday, according to ABC News. Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said there is no scientific evidence that the malaria drug called hydroxychloroquine, could be effective in treating the coronavirus. Fauci casted doubt on Trump's claims as he stood next to him on stage during the briefing, said ABC News. "The information that you're referring to specifically is anecdotal," Fauci told U.S. News . "It was not done in a clinically controlled trial, so you really can't make any definitive statement about it." Trump previously said on Thursday the malaria drug could be a "game changer". No drug has been approved to treat the coronavirus and it could take a year to develop a vaccine, according to ABC News. Americans were presented with conflict...

By Donna Baeck The interview I analyzed was an episode of the Daily titled, "The Coronavirus Goes Global". Michael Barbaro interviewed Donald G. McNeil Jr. who is a health reporter. Barbaro started the interview off strong by establishing the credibility of McNeil to his audience. The very first question asked how many epidemics he has covered. This led to McNeil saying he covered SARS, MERS, bird flu, 2009 swine flu, Zika and other diseases. As an audience member, I am now aware McNeil is capable to comparing the coronavirus to these other epidemics. Another strong aspect of Barbaro's interviewing is how he phrases his questions. He makes the interview very conversational and doesn't sound scripted. For example, he says "help me understand why_____" or "correct me if I'm wrong". Barbaro also asks questions to clarify. McNeil is comparing the severity of the coronavirus to other epidemics and some of the answers he's giving are in s...

By Donna Baeck Health officials announced a man in his 70s with underlying health conditions died from the coronavirus in the Washington state area on Saturday, according to the New York Times. On Friday, health officials also announced a man in his 50s died from the disease which was the nation's first coronavirus death. Both were being treated at EvergreenHealth hospital in Kirkland, according to the New York Times. The first man who died was from Washington state who had traveled to China when the virus first emerged. However, other recent cases in the U.S. don't have no known connection to travelers, according to the Chicago Tribune.  The New York Times reported there are three other confirmed coronavirus cases being treated at EvergreenHealth hospital. One woman is in her 80s, a woman in her 90s and a man in his 70s. The Chicago Tribune reported Washington state now has 12 confirmed cases of coronavirus. Researchers said the virus could have been spreading around...

By Donna Baeck Pete Buttigieg will suspend his presidential campaign on Sunday night in his hometown in South Bend, Ind., according to CNN.  After a disappointing loss in the South Carolina primary on Saturday, Buttigieg said he did not want to further his campaign into Super Tuesday. He canceled his plans to fly from Selma, Ala., to Dallas, Texas for a Sunday night rally but told reporters he would be flying back to South Bend to announce the end of his campaign, according to the New York Times. "He believes this is the right thing to do right now for our country and the country to deal this divided nation and defeat President Trump," an aide to Buttigieg said. CNN reported Buttigieg struggled to win voters of color after his success in Iowa and New Hampshire. He finished significantly behind his other contenders in both the Nevada caucus and South Carolina primary. Buttigieg's campaign still made history and broke barriers. He became the first gay candidate to...