I presented the paper “In Media Stat Virus: Visual Semiotics in the Age of Coronavirus” at the Tenth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies, held at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne on September 11–12, 2025. The talk, hosted in the Amphithéâtre Lefèbvre, examined how recurring symbols, metaphors, and graphic conventions about COVID-19—virus spheres, heat maps, mask iconography, and “flatten the curve” charts—framed public perception and policy debates across news, platforms, and everyday signage. The presentation drew on Jung’s theory of the archetypes, the hero’s journey of Campbell and the consensus background knowledge of Stuart hall. Familiar visuals didn’t just ‘explain’ the pandemic—they quietly instructed behavior and encoded judgments. By tracing these motifs across broadcasts, social feeds, and public spaces, we can see how design choices influenced trust, fear, and compliance.

About the conference
The Tenth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies convened researchers and practitioners in Paris to discuss media’s role in culture, technology, and society. The 2025 meeting took place September 11–12, 2025, at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne.