Political Leader Crisis Communication on Social Networks during the COVID-19 Pandemic
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.main##
Abstract
Effective crisis communication by a political leader can be significant in managing a pandemic
situation. In this article, we examine Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda's crisis communication
on the social network Facebook during the COVID-19 pandemic. We use a mixed content analysis
method to analyse the posts published on the president's account between 2020 and 2021. Our
research showed that Gitanas Nauseda recognised the health crisis caused by COVID-19 early and
spread clear and empathetic messages that calmed residents and informed them on how to behave
during the pandemic. However, due to the low frequency, the president's communication was barely
seen and heard. In addition, there was no cooperation with the national government in the crisis
communication. These factors may have led to a relatively small president's crisis communication
role in the COVID-19 pandemic management in Lithuania.
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.details##
Authors contributing to Public Policy and Administration agree to publish their articles under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public (CC BY-NC-ND) License, allowing third parties to share their work (copy, distribute, transmit) and to adapt it, under the condition that the authors are given credit, and that in the event of reuse or distribution, the terms of this licence are made clear.
