Four(4) newspaper clippings on the impact of violating the Laws governing the communication in

Malaysia
Discuss the roles and impacts of social Medias in combating COVIC 19 outbreaks.

What is COVID 19? Covid 19 is a decease that is caused by a virus named Corona Virus. This virus
has not been previously indentified in human. This virus is a large family of viruses transmitting between
animals and humans that illness at human. The illness that that human suffered is from a common cold
to more severe diseases such as Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS-Cov) and severe acute
respiratory syndrome (SARS-Cov).

This disease had started being affected from a district in China called Wuhan. Wuhan residents are
reported for having an exotic food such as cat, dog, venomous snake and so on. From their foods, the
virus that usually just affects animals had moved to human body. These cases became more worst when
the virus actually is very easy to be separated in environment and move to others body. People that
have been affected usually will have these symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath and
breathing difficulties. In other cause, covid 19 can cause pneumonia or severe acute respiratory
syndrome, particularly in those with other chronic underlying health conditions and even death. Now
this virus had been separated to the whole world.

Based on this critical issue, social Medias will play a big role in separating information about
combating COVID 19 outbreaks. The first role of social media in combating COVID 19 is social media is a
moving fact. Nowadays, information’s at our fingertips. People will need just to click on theirs smart
phone or tablet to get fresh news. Moreover, this way is fastest than news on broadcast television and
people at this time once they wake up, they will at their phone first to keep up to date about this virus
issue. So social media has a big responsibility to spread information from whole world. They will have
responsibility to spread info such as information to reduce general from getting affection, how others
countries took an action to reduce the case. For example, Malaysia had followed China action by
lockdown the country. Now we can see the positive effect of this action. Malaysia’s cases right now had
reduced a lot than before. Besides, the internet news, broadcast news still will be the main source to
guarantee news that they read. People will always look for a press conference that talked by the
minister to know about the progress of the cases such as to know how people had been affected in a
day, how many people that has discovered and how many deaths because of the virus.

The second role is fighting fake news. Even though now the minister, front liner and the patient are
fighting so hard for this virus, there are some people who keep spreading fake news without thinking
the effect. Fake news has become an epidemic because there is a lot of fake news that had been
spreading everyday. So social media also will be responsibilities to spread info that which news is truth
and which news is fake because people said that the fake news epidemic is worst than corona virus
epidemic. This fake news had made people became panic. Without hear from the minister, they did
something that out of control. For example, a few days before lockdown was enforced, people started
to get panic until they did panic buying. At that time, there were a lot of people at supermarket that
shopped for more than one fully trolley. From this, government also used media social to inform people
about latest news. This is to make sure that people will not read information from fake blog. Even
though, the step has been took, until 26 April 2020, there already 238 investigation papers opened on
Covid-19 related fake news cases but people behind social media not give up on fighting the fake news
by spreading the authentic news from time to time. The WHO has stressed this standpoint, Director-
General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stating in press conferences: “This is the time for science, not
rumors. This is the time for solidarity, not stigma.”

The third one is social media also has a role to bring positiveness in this critical and scary time.
Despite fake news that always been spread by not responsible people, social media also an important
platform to spread positiveness. At first the corona virus decease news and the symptom is spread by
government and front liner, people are afraid to make a check up because they thought the will face a
scary situation. Some of them afraid to accept that they maybe had been affected based on the
symptoms they had because they thought people that have this decease will going to die because there
is not medicine for this epidemic. With social media, patient that are positive and now being treated in a
ward record themselves in their ward and show that they are okay and in healing process. They show
that there’s nothing to be afraid if they make a medical checkup. Then, media social also spread the info
that even this epidemic still has no cure, people still has a huge chance to recover because our own
immune system will fight with the virus. Just for people with other complication of deceases will have a
problem. After this, people started to have a brave to do medical check up. From this, people that has
been affected can be treated and quarantine. So the cases, reduced from time to time.

Last but not least, social media is a source income. During Malaysia’s movement order (MCO),
people can’t life as usual. Restaurant can’t be opened as usual. Worker also can’t go to their office for
work. So they took another alternative to keep surviving during MCO period. By using social media they
sell their food through online. When they receive the order, they will send the food by cash on delivery
(cod). At this social media really play a big role for people who only have a daily income. Moreover,
nowadays selling product at social media is really effective because people will keep sharing the post.
Then It will make the product be a know product with just a click.

In conclusion, social media roles and impacts are moving fact, fighting fake news, bring
positiveness in this critical and scary time and source income. As we can see at this critical time social
media plays a big role in our daily live. Plus, social media has a huge capacity audience. Everyone now
are looking for news in internet or waiting for a press conference. So, media’s people have big
responsibilities in their work. They need to see if people are in fear, they need to find authentic
information to calm people. When there is fake news, they need recover it back with authentic news
and they need to show a fine that has been set up by government to stop these irresponsible people.
Despite all those challenges, the media is responsible to report the fact and to communicate the health
and travel advises that are from government source.