Bayar da labarai game da cutar ta COVID-19 ta bambanta ta ƙasa, lokaci da kafofin watsa labarai. Kafofin yada labarai a lokaci guda sun ci gaba da sanar da masu kallo game da abubuwan da ke faruwa a yanzu da suka shafi cutar, kuma sun ba da gudummawa ga rashin fahimta ko labarai na karya . A cikin Janairu 2020, cikakken watan farko da aka san barkewar cutar, Time ya rubuta labarai na Turanci 41,000 da ke ɗauke da kalmar "coronavirus", wanda 19,000 suka sanya shi cikin kanun labarai. An kwatanta wannan da cutar Ebola ta Kivu, wacce ke da labarai 1,800 da kanun labarai 700 a watan Agustan 2018. Paul Levinson, wani mai bincike a fannin sadarwa da nazarin kafofin watsa labaru, ya danganta wannan babban bambance-bambance ga koma bayan da aka dauka kan barkewar cutar Ebola a shekarar 2014, tare da damuwa game da sanya ido kan yadda kasar Sin ke yada labaran. Recode ya ruwaito a 17 Maris cewa, daga 3,000 high-traffic labarai sites, a kusa da 1 bisa dari na buga articles suna da alaka da cuta, amma waɗanda articles janye a kusa da 13 bisa dari na duka ra'ayoyi, tare da subtopics kamar zamantakewa distancing, flattening da kwana da kuma keɓe kai kasancewa sananne musamman.