This study is primarily concerned with Newspaper Coverage of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Cameroon. Newspapers written and published in Cameroon constituted the study population of this work. The main objective of the study was to assess how newspapers covered the COVID-19

Pandemic in Cameroon in 2020. It was guided by two theories namely; the Diffusion of Innovation theory and Framing theory. Data was collected through content analysis, using a mixed approach with three newspapers published in the English language: The Post, The Guardian Post, and Cameroon Tribune as the purposive sample. The findings suggest that newspapers exploited eight frames in covering the pandemic with the political frame being the most used. Also, consistency is very much evident in the reports. It further highlights that the reports lacked balance, were ununiformed, and not coordinated which accounts for the fact that journalists do not do proper investigation and research before writing their reports concerning the pandemic thereby making these reports doubtful. The study concludes that Cameroonian newspapers have been instrumental and frequent in providing vital information to the public on the nature, prevention, and medication of the COVID-19 pandemic. The newspapers also recognised the place of proximity in news selection by reporting more frequently the outbreak in Cameroon than that of distant outbreaks of similar diseases in foreign countries. Based on this conclusion, journalists should adopt Hallin and Mancini’s model of media and politics, which states that crisis communication should be truthful, fast, consistent, and explanatory. This will help reduce inconsistency in reporting. Again, while newspapers are available for content analysis, a survey of audience perception of broadcast media reports on the pandemic or health crises is necessary and recommended for further study. This is because it will determine if there is a health behaviour change caused by the media. It will also determine if there is a fast rate of diffusion caused by media reports. This will greatly complement the findings of this study.