Institutional communication during the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Spain: An analysis of (non-)compliance with Law 29/2005 and risk communication principles

Abstract

This article critically examines the institutional communication of the Spanish Government during the COVID‑19 vaccination campaign, assessing its alignment with Law 29/2005 on Institutional Advertising and Communication and with core principles of risk communication in public health. Through a documentary analysis of official campaigns (#YoMeVacunoSeguro), press releases, public statements and corporate web content, it explores how messages about vaccine “safety” and “efficacy” were framed and how coherent they were with scientific evidence on the presentation of risks and benefits.

The findings show a systematic use of categorical formulas (“safe and effective vaccines”) without numerical contextualization of risks, as well as a predominant reliance on relative risk reduction while omitting metrics such as absolute risk reduction and number needed to treat. This framing, known to inflate perceived clinical benefit, departs from international recommendations that call for explicit acknowledgment of uncertainties and adverse events in order to sustain trust.

At the legal level, the paper identifies a regulatory asymmetry: while campaigns formally classified as institutional advertising are subject to specific controls, identical messages disseminated through press conferences or political statements remain outside that regime, creating a protection gap in a high‑impact health context. The article concludes that institutional communication prioritized short‑term persuasive effectiveness over probabilistic transparency and calls for rethinking the legal status of institutional communication in emergencies, extending to official fact‑based messages robust standards of truthfulness, statistical contextualization and accountability.