From the CDC to emerging infectious disease publics: The long-now of polarizing and complex health crises

This study examines how public discourse around COVID-19 unfolded on Twitter through the lens of crisis communication and digital publics. Analyzing over 275,000 tweets involving the CDC, we identify 16 distinct discourse clusters shaped by framing, sentiment, credibility, and network dynamics. We find that CDC messaging became a flashpoint for affective and ideological polarization, with users aligning along competing frames of science vs. freedom, and public health vs. political overreach. Most clusters formed echo chambers, while a few enabled cross cutting dialogue. Publics emerged not only around ideology but also around topical and emotional stakes, reflecting shifting concerns across different stages of the pandemic. While marginalized communities raised consistent equity concerns, these narratives struggled to reshape broader discourse. Our findings highlight the importance of long-term, adaptive engagement with diverse publics and propose design interventions such as multi-agent AI assistants, to support more inclusive communication throughout extended public health crises.