Reflections of Media Coverage of the 2023 Israeli War in the Gaza Strip on the Psychological Effects on the Palestinian Public

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Al-Quds Open University... Faculty of Information

Abstract

The study aimed to reveal the psychological impacts of media coverage of the 2023 Israeli war in the Gaza Strip on the Palestinian public, analyze the effect of media coverage on the psychological state of the Palestinian audience, and identify strategies to mitigate the negative psychological impacts resulting from media exposure. The study employed a descriptive survey methodology and was conducted on a simple random sample of 150 displaced individuals in the Khan Younis Governorate. The survey questionnaire was used to collect data and information from the study sample. The key findings of the study were as follows:

High levels of psychological effects, including anxiety (84.2%), fear (87.4%), stress (87.8%), and depression (83.8%), were reported by the study sample as a result of following news related to the war in the Gaza Strip.
Media significantly contributes to increasing psychological stress due to its coverage of the war in the Gaza Strip, with an overall percentage of 81.6% and a standard deviation of 1.13.
The study sample follows various media channels at a rate of 100%, with social media being the most followed at 49.6%, followed by radio at 31%, television at 17.2%, and websites at 2.2%.
Balanced media coverage was identified as one of the most effective strategies to reduce the negative psychological impacts of the war on the Gaza Strip through the media, followed by mental health awareness and the promotion of transparency and credibility.
The study sample thinks significantly about war-related news even when they are not actively following it, with an overall percentage of 96.3% and a standard deviation of 0.32.

Recommendations:

Focusing on following news from official and digital media and reducing the chaos of news on social media networks.
Media outlets should consider the news content and accompanying images and videos for the diverse audience to limit psychological impacts.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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