ABSTRACT
The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating effect on the UK economy as well as on the health and well-being of the nation. The series of lockdowns, which began in March 2020, shut down large parts of the economy and caused the largest fall in economic activity since records began. The media have played a key role in mediating the understanding of the crisis, as politicians and the press alike wrestled to stay ahead of the evolving situation. Wealth inequality, already much higher than income inequality, also increased as a result of the pandemic. This chapter looks at public attitudes to media coverage of the economic effects of the pandemic.
