The UK and Germany have experienced some important political and economic developments in the past decade, with both economies being seen as responsible to some degree for the future of the European economy. One is a country entrenched in EU politics while the other is now viewed as a delinquent nation, but both are increasingly nationalistic and stalwarts for austerity. This explores the communicative dynamics between economic news, economic understanding and attitudes toward politics in both countries and the role these dynamics have played in economic and political developments. It uses new survey data about the public’s media use and key variables that are affecting engagement to analyse the types of media the public uses in the UK and Germany and its impact on economic understanding and political decisions. It also looks into some of the key barriers and challenges to understanding.