HEROES OR VICTIMS? MEDIA REPRESENTATION OF FRONTLINE HEALTH WORKERS IN COVID-19 COMMUNICATION

Abstract

Frontline health workers became central symbolic figures in public communication during the COVID-19 pandemic, widely represented across news media and digital platforms. This study examines how media framed their identities and experiences, focusing on the dominant narratives of heroism and victimhood and the implications of these portrayals for public understanding and professional identity. Using a qualitative design, the research analyzed 300 news reports, 100 broadcast clips, 200 social media posts, and 25 semi-structured interviews with frontline workers and general audience members. The findings reveal that media largely employed binary framing: representing frontline workers as heroic saviors sacrificing for the public good or as emotionally overwhelmed victims suffering from exhaustion, trauma, and institutional neglect. While heroic framing initially generated public solidarity and compliance, it also masked structural failures and imposed expectations of self-sacrifice. Victim framing evoked empathy but risked reducing workers’ agency. The study highlights significant representational inequalities, particularly the exclusion of lower-wage and female workers, and demonstrates interpretive tension between symbolic praise and material support. The results underscore the need for more balanced and realistic media communication that reflects structural realities rather than emotional spectacle. This research contributes to crisis communication scholarship and calls for more ethical and equitable media practices that acknowledge the complexity of frontline healthcare labor beyond symbolic binary roles.