Food security in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in remote Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic: An analysis of print news media and press releases

Abstract

Objective: This article aims to examine the framing of the issue of food security in very remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in print media and press releases during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Methods: Newspaper articles were identified following a systematic search of the Factiva database, and press releases were identified from manual search of key stakeholder websites from January to June 2020 and analysed using a combined adapted framework of the Bacchi’s What’s the Problem Represented to be? Framework and the Narrative Policy Framework. Results: A food delivery “problem” dominated representations in press releases, and food supply at store level had prominence in print media. Both presented the cause of food insecurity as a singular, identifiable point in time, framed the issue as one of helplessness and lack of control, and proposed policy action. Conclusions: The issue of food security was represented in the media as a simple issue requiring an immediate fix, as opposed to a complex issue requiring a systems-level and sustained policy response. Implications for public health: This study will help to guide future media dialogue to impact on both immediate and longer-term solutions to food insecurity in very remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia.