7. SARS discourse as an anti-SARS ideology: The case of Beijing

This study examines a series of SARS case reports produced by the News Office of China’s Health Ministry between 21 April and 20 May 2003. The study first examines the change of “stages” in the generic structure of the 30 case reports, and then relates these changes to the way in which the News Office selectively included and excluded SARS case information. It is observed that, by adding and deleting stages in the case reports, the News Office attached more prominence to information that went with the interests and beliefs of its own group and downgraded information that was inconsistent with their interests and desires. Preference for some information and ignoring of other information are seen as a way of representing the anti-SARS social practice and constituting the group’s particular anti-SARS ideology.