Creatives urge jab as survey analyses news topics

Jul 22, 2021 at 09:20 am by admin


Of all the TV commercials urging doubters to get vaccinated, none we’ve seen plucks the emotional strings like that of Victoria’s arts community.

And when research confirms what we all knew – that COVID-19 is the most written about topic for newsmedia – it comes with a refreshing message: Just get it done.

The lavish TVC features a range of high-profile entertainers from across Victoria, and is a reminder of a talent in the Australian state. All have a single rallying cry to get vaccinated as soon as possible, a message not only for Victoria, but for the whole of Australia (supplies permitting!) and the world.

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is credited for bringing entertainers together, and makes an impressive opening.

A clever script delivers the analogies that remind us that the vaccine is not a solo, but rather something that comes together as an ensemble effort, with a reminder that vaccine hesitancy goes with normal nerves before “the performance of a lifetime”.

“So if you’re unsure about getting vaccinated, chat to your GP, and they can help you get the facts,” it says.

Multi-talented composer Tim Minchin adds the reminder that “some of the stuff you read online has some pretty massive plot holes.”

There’s also the worthy ulterior motive of getting creative talent back to doing what they love, with a reminder from MSO managing director Sophie Galaise. “Along with our colleagues in the arts community, we are encouraging our audiences and the wider community to get vaccinated so we can all get back to doing what we love – whether that’s playing contact sports, enjoying a meal with our loved ones, or getting back on stage to entertain our treasured audiences.”

Nice shot of entertainers waiting, post-jab, in Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Buildings. Made me yearn for the days when Australia’s PacPrint trade show – which has just been postponed because of the pandemic – was held there.

A study by the University of Canberra’s news and media research centre with monitoring company Streem confirms COVID-19 was media’s top click in 2020, with more than 2.5 million news items related to it.

Early reporting was predominantly as a health issue, but by August, political issues and steps towards an economic recovery and the creation of a vaccine had taken over.

News items were comprehensively sorted – by generic platform, “overall theme” and topics, and sorted by key sources, countries, public and private ownership, state based and national newspapers, as well as whether the news organisation was metropolitan or regional based – but a decision was made by the authors not to sort coverage by news outlets.

Peter Coleman

Sections: Newsmedia industry

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