Taiwan’s Simple Yet Unprecedented Method of Clear Communication– Daily Press Briefing

Last week, I discussed why, without clear communication, a rational policy could meet resistance from the public. This week, I wish to explore an excellent example of such clear communication done by Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC)– conducting daily press briefings.

Taiwan has implemented many successful public health policies since January 2020. Some rely on the private sector (i.e. quarantine hotels), while others rely on the public sector (fighting disinformation). Wearing masks is a must and is ingrained in Taiwan’s society just as in other countries in Asia that have suffered from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). These three policies complement one another in theory and practice. Based on the analysis of my previous piece, policies work when they align with the legal and cultural norms of that particular society.

Here comes my main (albeit bold) argument: I argue that none of these policies would work without complete transparency in informing the public as the public is key to containing the spread of the pandemic.

One can further break down complete transparency into two facets: transparency in terms of answering the public’s doubt or worries and transparency in sharing resources across agencies.

First, in the midst of fighting against the unknown enemy, people tend to panic, or at least worry, about their lives and their loved ones. These irrational fears may lead to devastating actions, including segmentation, discrimination, or vandalism. At a minimum, the society suffers from anger, hatred, and mistrust. After all, who can blame the bewildered herd when survival is imprinted in people’s course of action? Yet, I find the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) so masterful at clearing people’s concerns by taking an unprecedented move: hosting a daily press conference. The idea is simple: the Minister of Health and Welfare Mr. Dr. Shih-Chung Chen (陳時中 aka Taiwan’s Dr. Anthony Fauci) and other ministers sit and answer every single question from the press everyday. Their efforts are critical at combating disinformation (presumably caused by malicious foreign powers or factions that associate with them), erasing public concerns to prevent Taiwanese people from falling into irrational fear, and highlighting Taiwan’s transparent fashion of tackling international and domestic affairs.

Second, transparency in sharing resources across agencies is fundamentally important at inter-agency cooperation. The National Immigration Agency shares a database with the National Health Insurance Database so that front-line doctors and nurses are fully aware of a patient’s travel history, symptoms, and medicine history. Obtaining these pieces of information ensures relevant stakeholders results in efficient use of time in taking an appropriate course of action. Moreover, this cross-agency support is vitally important when it comes to medical masks. In Taiwan, people can take their National Health Insurance (NHI) Card to buy medical masks at convenience stores such as 7–11.

In short, communication is essential in enhancing the complementarity of a diverse set of policies. Communication, in its simplest form, is to inform the public on the whereabouts of the government and what future course of action it will take. The public is not the government’s enemy, but just a herd that needs a beacon of light to be guided.

Note: This post over-simplifies the specific policies that Taiwan has taken but nonetheless seeks to highlight the importance of communication in the realm of public policy. This importance leads to tangible impacts on the public and should not be neglected in a policy assessment.