A Look Back at 2020: Nursing in Turkish Media: A Qualitative Study

Objective: This study aimed to examine how nursing was portrayed in the Turkish national media before and during the COVID-19 pandemic by comparing media coverage in 2019 and 2020 and exploring editors-in-chief's perspectives on the presentation of nursing in the media.Methods: This qualitative documentary research was conducted in two stages. In the first stage, news reports related to nursing published in the national media during 2019 and 2020 were collected and analyzed using document analysis. In the second stage, written responses from seven editors-in-chief of national media outlets were collected to enrich the interpretation of the findings. Data from both stages were analyzed using conventional qualitative content analysis with an inductive approach. The study was reported according to the COREQ checklist.Results: The number of nursing-related news reports increased from 493 in 2019 to 1,281 in 2020, while positive portrayals increased from 8.5% to 51.1%. Nurses were frequently represented as heroes and fighters; however, their professional autonomy, leadership, scientific expertise, and contributions to health policy and pandemic management remained largely absent from media coverage. Editors-in-chief similarly emphasized nurses' self-sacrifice and dedication while giving limited attention to their professional and scientific roles.Conclusion: Although the COVID-19 pandemic increased nurses' media visibility and improved their public image, media representations continued to prioritize symbolic attributes such as heroism and self-sacrifice over scientific knowledge, autonomy, and professional identity. These findings highlight the need for more accurate media representation of nurses' professional and scientific roles.