Coronavirus (COVID-19) UK | May 8 - May 14

N E W S W H I P R E S E A R C H C E N T E R

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K May 8 - May 14

• Peak engagement (slide 3)

• Top websites (slide 5)

• Top stories (slide 7)

• Daily themes (slide 9)

Table of contents

2

Peak engagementC O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article engagement over time

0K

1M

2M

3M

4M

5M

6M

7M

May-8 May-9 May-10 May-11 May-12 May-13 May-14

Engagement with articles peaked on Tuesday, the same day that the Cabinet Office released the UK’s COVID-19 recovery plan.

• Overall, there was more engagement this week, ranging between 2.5 and 6 million each day.

Peak engagement Engagement from May 8 - May 14

UK publishers mentioning the coronavirus:

78,286 articles 27 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

Top websitesC O V I D - 1 9 | U K

# Website Top Headline Total Engagements

Total Articles

1 dailymail.co.ukKawasaki-like disease affecting children IS caused by the coronavirus

4,297,004 3,025

2 theguardian.comThe coronavirus slayer! How Kerala's rock star health minister helped save it from Covid-19

3,793,556 613

3 independent.co.uk15 US states now hit by rare inflammatory syndrome impacting children

2,881,864 719

4 bbc.co.uk UK furlough scheme extended by four months 2,797,713 644

5 sky.comCoronavirus: Police fury as 'hundreds' of people have pizzas, beers and wine in park

1,960,488 407

6 express.co.ukGermany’s daily coronavirus cases nearly TRIPLE - states bring back tougher measures

1,161,191 815

7 thesun.co.ukParents WON'T be fined for not sending their kids into school when they reopen

1,090,252 787

8 itv.comStation ticket office worker dies with Covid-19 after being spat at

738,324 429

9 mirror.co.ukBoy, 14, with no underlying conditions dies from new disease linked to Covid-19

728,904 465

10 metro.co.ukNew York has 100 children battling deadly coronavirus-related 'Kawasaki Disease'

500,937 264

COVID-19 Top websites publishing articles this week (by engagement)

All of the top UK websites covering the coronavirus were large news organizations.

• The Express had the top article this week.

• Overall, the Daily Mail had the most engagements and it published the most articles.

• Seven of the top ten websites generated more than a million engagements. Four of them had more than 2 million.

Top websitesC O V I D - 1 9 | U K

Top storiesC O V I D - 1 9 | U K

# Website Headline Total Engagements

1 express.co.uk Germany’s daily coronavirus cases nearly TRIPLE - states bring back tougher measures

765,798

2 dailymail.co.uk Kawasaki-like disease affecting children IS caused by the coronavirus

763,015

3 independent.co.uk 15 US states now hit by rare inflammatory syndrome impacting children

681,214

4 bbc.co.uk UK furlough scheme extended by four months 472,347

5 dailymail.co.uk International travel may not be back to normal for another three years

407,361

6 independent.co.uk 72 people test positive for coronavirus after attending 'large gathering' as state sees stay at home protests

406,968

7 dailymail.co.uk Coronavirus CAN enter the body through the eyes 395,919

8 dailymail.co.uk Mouthwash could prevent COVID-19 transmission, scientists say

343,259

9 bbc.co.uk UK 'to bring in 14-day air passenger quarantine' 285,206

10 theguardian.com The coronavirus slayer! How Kerala's rock star health minister helped save it from Covid-19

246,672

Many of the top articles this week looked at lifting lockdowns, the travel industry, and the spread of the virus.

• New quarantine restrictions were announced for visitors flying in from outside the UK.

• Germany reinstated a lockdown after cases tripled.

• There were also a few articles focusing on how children were being affected by COVID-19, particularly a seemingly related inflammatory condition.

Top stories

COVID-19 Top websites publishing articles this week (by engagement)

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

Day-by-dayC O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Friday

Friday, May 8New restrictions were announced affecting anyone traveling by airplane from outside of the UK.

• People were outraged when JustGiving collected more than £300,000 in fees from Tom Moore’s £32 million fundraiser benefitting the National Health Service.

• A six-week-old baby that died from COVID-19 also resonated with readers.

UK publishers mentioning the coronavirus:

9,054 articles 3 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Saturday

Most of the top news on Saturday surrounded lockdown enforcement. There were also a lot of quips from public figures on social media.

• Barack Obama criticized president Donald Trump for America’s failure to curtail COVID-19.

• Actress Miriam Margolyes expressed disappointment in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recovery from the coronavirus.

Saturday, May 9 UK publishers mentioning

the coronavirus:

6,377 articles 3 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

On Sunday, a health warning took the spotlight: a coronavirus infection could start in the eyes.

• The Daily Mail’s article cited findings from Johns Hopkins and generated nearly 400k engagements.

• Other news from the day included more details on easing lockdown restrictions.

• A few articles also focused on America and China.

Sunday, May 10

COVID-19 Article themes from Sunday

UK publishers mentioning the coronavirus:

6,652 articles 3 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Monday

Engagement picked up on Monday, shifting to protests of lockdowns in America.

• In other news, the Cabinet Office released the UK’s COVID-19 recovery plan.

• Several articles also appeared about people going back to work in the UK and commuters packing the London Tube.

Monday, May 11 UK publishers mentioning

the coronavirus:

13,454 articles 5 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Tuesday

Engagement spiked on Tuesday when news broke that Germany reinstated lockdowns after there was a surge in the number of new COVID-19 cases.

• The Express’s article had more than 765k engagements.

• A rail worker dying after being spat on by a person who claimed to have a COVID-19 was also news that resonated, with coverage from several news outlets.

Tuesday, May 12 UK publishers mentioning

the coronavirus:

14,576 articles 6 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Wednesday

The top news on Wednesday shifted to children, as cases of COVID-19 were linked to an inflammatory disorder.

• The Independent’s article had more than 680k engagements.

• UNICEF warned that up to 6,000 children could die per day due to disrupted health routines caused by the pandemic.

Wednesday, May 13 UK publishers mentioning

the coronavirus:

13,774 articles 3 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

COVID-19 Article themes from Thursday

News from Thursday continued to dwell on the inflammatory disorder affecting children, which was linked with the coronavirus.

• The Daily Mail’s article had more than 760k engagements.

• There were also a few articles calling for research into whether mouthwash could prevent COVID-19 transmission.

Thursday, May 14 UK publishers mentioning

the coronavirus:

14,249 articles 3 million engagements

C O V I D - 1 9 | U K

Thank you!

N E W S W H I P R E S E A R C H C E N T E R

S U M M A R Y

Appendix

Search terms: coronavirus OR "covid-19" OR "covid 19" OR "ncov" OR "2019-ncov" OR "sars-cov-2"

Restricted to: United Kingdom•