The COVID-19 pandemic has caught Americans’ rapt attention. Roughly half of U.S. adults (51 percent) are following news about it very closely, with another 38 percent following it fairly closely, according to a new Pew Research Center Election News Pathways survey conducted from March 10-16, 2020. During this period, the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. increased from about 650 to over 3,000, the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic, President Donald Trump announced a ban on travel to the U.S. from European countries and many universities announced closures or remote classes.

Americans give the news media fairly high marks for their coverage of COVID-19, though most think their reporting has at least somewhat exaggerated the risks.

Misinformation—has also found its way into the information stream. About half the public (48 percent) say they’ve been exposed to at least some made-up news and information related to the virus. And when asked two questions about the virus, substantial portions express belief in claims that are in fact false. These findings come from a survey of 8,914 U.S. adults who are members of the Center’s American Trends Panel.

Click here to read the full story from Pew Research Center.

More Images