China's media blitz amid flu surge causing even more public anxiety

Move, which came only after WHO made an inquiry, appears defensive and reactive

- Elizabeth Law

About a month after China was hit by what appeared to be a surge in respiratory illnesses, especially among children, the country's National Health Commission (NHC) leapt into action.

It held a series of media conferences and put out public service announcements, beginning with an announcement on Nov 24 and an entire press conference dedicated to the subject two days later.

The moves came only after the World Health Organisation (WHO) asked China for more details about the surge.

Experts say, however, they came too little, too late - the cases of illness have led to a wave of public panic and an overwhelmed medical system.

China's top health authority had warned of a potential wave of seasonal influenza - 2023's winter season is the first since the country fully lifted strict Covid-19 restrictions in January - but few took heed.

Then earlier in November, images started to emerge on social media of overcrowded hospitals in Beijing and other northern provinces, with many patients suffering from respiratory illnesses.

That called to mind the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, when reports from Wuhan referenced an "undiagnosed pneumonia".

By the time WHO made an official request for more information on the current cases on Nov 22, there were increased concerns from ordinary folks and the medical community alike about whether the Chinese government was concealing the outbreak of a new virus.

This pushed the NHC and various local governments into a publicity drive.

They have been holding media conferences to reassure worried citizens that the spike in the number of respiratory illnesses is merely a result of the winter flu season, while also putting out daily advice on how to prevent catching a cold this winter season.