ABSTRACT
Recent analysis has highlighted a recent and emerging disconnect between trends in levels of poverty and inequality in Britain and the public’s perceptions of and attitudes towards them. Levels of poverty and inequality, as measured by official statistics, have remained relatively stable, at the population level at least, since the time of the 2008 financial crisis. This chapter discusses the specific role played by the media in contributing to these changes in public attitudes, considering how recent changes in views about and perceptions of poverty and inequality may have been influenced by levels and types of media consumption specifically. It begins by considering how media coverage of poverty and inequality has changed over the past decade.
