Social media communication during the COVID-19 pandemic: A comparative study of the United States and China

Effective health communication is a crucial method to control the COVID-19 outbreak. The exchange of real- time information, advice, and opinions between experts and people becomes essential, especially during pandemics. Using social media channels is a method to ensure appropriate health communication and an ongoing, consistent media presence. This chapter aims to analyze the impact of social media on health communication and examine public engagement during the COVID- 19 outbreak between the United States and China. First, the study compares the number of posts and analyzes different social media platforms\u27 functions in health communication from March 1st to July 31st 2020, using social media announcements of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as the national public health institute for both countries. The social media platforms used for public awareness and notifications are quite different in the United States and China. Sina Blog is the most popular social media microblogging platforms in China, while Americans prefer to use Twitter. And lastly, it examined the functions/ categories of text messages on each social media about health communication