ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the basis for the book’s argument and it challenges common criticisms about the media’s distorting role in forming people’s economic perceptions. The chapter shows that people’s perceptions of general economic developments are surprisingly accurate overall, and that people learn about the economy from the media. This applies not only to the general population but also to people who lack interest in economic news (the so-called inattentive audience). We test our findings in 28 countries and show that these results hold cross-nationally.
