The advent, course, and possible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic are now the focus of global attention. From whichever side the geopolitical centers of influence might view it, the problem of the coronavirus concerns all world leaders and the re...
The advent, course, and possible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic are now the focus of global attention. From whichever side the geopolitical centers of influence might view it, the problem of the coronavirus concerns all world leaders and the representatives of all branches of science, especially physicians, economists, and politicians - virtually the entire population of the planet. The uniqueness of the COVID-19 phenomenon lies in the uncertainty of the problem itself, the peculiarities and specifics of the course of the biological processes in modern conditions, as well as the sharp confrontation of the main political players on the world stage. Based on an analysis of scientific research, the article describes the profile of the emotional concept of "anxiety" in Russian linguoculture. Through monitoring the headlines of Russian media reports in the "COVID-19" section of Google News and Mail News news aggregators dated August 4-6, 2021, the study establishes the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the alarm-generating news products on coronavirus in the Russian segment of the Internet and interprets the specifics of media information about COVID-19. The level of mass media criticism in Russia is determined through a phone survey. It is concluded that coronavirus reports in online media conceptualize anxiety about the SARS virus and the COVID-19 disease as a complex cognitive structure. The media abuse the trick of "magic numbers" and emotionally expressive words in news headlines, which are perceived by mass information consumers first and typically uncritically.