COVID-19 in the Media: Stressors and Coping Mechanisms among Black Individuals

ABSTRACT

Using survey data of 330 self-identified Black individuals, we examine how Black individuals coped with news media coverage about the negative consequences of COVID-19 for Black communities, and what stressors other than COVID-19 news coverage they experienced. We find that Black individuals relied primarily on healthy, positive-coping strategies (e.g., taking proactive health measures, spending time with family and friends, and focusing on work), with substance abuse, denial of reality, and news avoidance being the only maladaptive behaviors. Other stressors include personal health concerns, political and racial justice issues, and insecurities about employment, housing, finances, and the future. The research promotes narratives of how Black individuals navigate messaging about their cultural group during the pandemic and also addresses the role of intercultural communication via means of news consumption as a potential mechanism to encourage individual wellbeing.

KEYWORDS:

• Coping
• COVID-19
• news media
• Black individuals
• health communication

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).