Taiwan successfully used viral memes, animal mascots, and teddy bears to fight its coronavirus outbreak — here’s the playbook

Business Insider
Date: June 04, 2020
By: Aria Bendix 

More than four months after identifying its first coronavirus case, Taiwan has reported less than 450 infections. Only seven people of the country's 24 million have died.

Part of that success in fighting the virus was Taiwan's quick response: The state began to monitor incoming travelers from Wuhan for signs of respiratory illness on December 30, after Chinese ophthalmologist Li Wenliang warned fellow doctors about a possible outbreak resembling SARS. Then in January, Taiwanese officials began isolating every infected patient and tracing their contacts.

But a second key element of Taiwan's strategy was communicating with citizens through humorous stunts and digital campaigns. The state hired comedians to help craft viral memes, adopted animal mascots to inform the public about important safety information, and even used teddy bears to encourage social distancing at restaurants.     [FULL  STORY]