(USDP). MYNFREL looked at the coverage of five newspapers, six television channels, five radio stations, and seven websites. In both private- and state-owned daily newspapers, the NLD was mentioned the most, the USDP second and the PPP third; most of the NLD mentions media were found to be positive, while ethnic minority parties received less coverage. Several political parties also told ANFREL that they felt the media landscape was tilted in favour of the ruling party. Minor parties were not widely covered by the media, while the competition between the NLD and USDP was often highlighted. In addition, MYNFREL told ANFREL that while the media generally reported the elections as free and fair, there was a need for more inclusive coverage in the media as vulnerable sectors like ethnic minorities, women, and the youth were under-reported despite some efforts to cover them. Impact of COVID-19 The COVID-19 pandemic has also been challenging for the media as travel restrictions in place to curb the further spread of the virus have prevented them from conducting their work. Under Myanmar’s strict stay-at-home orders, the media were not among the sectors to be granted an exemption, which would have permitted them to continue informing the public 141. The ban on international commercial flights also made it difficult for international media to cover the 2020 elections adequately 142. Several news outfits have also been hit by the economic effect of COVID-19, with some reducing their workforce and therefore their coverage of elections and other pressing issues. In Rakhine state, ANFREL learned that the delivery of all newspapers stopped since August due to a COVID-19 outbreak. Limited campaign activities by parties and candidates also lessened media coverage prior to the elections. Disinformation There have been a number of disinformation incidents reported during the 2020 elections, including a fake graphic of a pre-election survey showing declining public trust in the NLD, which was shared hundreds of times in multiple Facebook posts and blogs 143, and a website spreading disinformation and hate speech while imitating the design of Radio Free Asia 144. UEC has warned of disinformation spreading on social media, especially from political parties saying they were having problems with the advance voting process. UEC stated that "those information [sic] consist of not only correct information but also false facts, exaggerations, the facts that can mislead voters by concealing accurate information, and indirect facts." The UEC further reminded that "saying, writing or sharing incorrect information and baseless information is disrupting the voting processes and the elections, so it is a violation of section 58(d) of the relevant Hluttaw Election Law 145.” Journalists and members of news outfits interviewed by ANFREL shared that they were not especially concerned about disinformation affecting the 2020 elections, but they also acknowledged that many people were sharing false information on social media. There were also numerous fact-checking 141 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/28/world/myanmars-virus-restrictions-keep-journalists-at-home.html https://www.mmtimes.com/news/foreign-reporters-cannot-enter-myanmar-cover-election-run.html 143 https://factcheck.afp.com/fake-survey-results-about-declining-public-trust-myanmars-ruling-party-circulatefacebook-ahead 144 https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/media-fake-10132020104123.html 145 https://www.gnlm.com.mm/announcement-about-spreading-election-disinformation/ 142 49