Paper short abstract:

Trust in authorities, low numbers of infected, and a large number of rules imposed by the authorities: The initial positive attitude to participation in the voluntary effort to reduce the number of infected, has turned to more negative reactions. Who are the critics, and what are the narratives?

Paper long abstract:

Nations have responded differently to Covid-19. In Norway there was a lockdown around two weeks after the first known infection was reported. The number of infected and the death rate per 100.000 are quite low, and in addition, trust in authorities is high. At first, there was quite a positive attitude to participation in the voluntary effort to reduce the number of infected. During the spring and summer, criticism was directed towards those who holidayed abroad, those who travelled across the border to Sweden for shopping, and to young adults in their 20s and the elderly, who were criticised for not caring enough about social distancing. The second wave hit Norway in late autumn and new recommendations were introduced such as the wearing of masks on public transport and in supermarkets, and restrictions were put on the number of people allowed to gather in private houses. Local and national authorities were now increasingly and more loudly criticised in traditional and social media and, for the time being with a few demonstrations. In this presentation, I will discuss this criticism: Who are the critics? Which narratives are found in the research material? The latter consists of Norwegian traditional media (search words are combinations of “corona, Covid-19, mask, vaccine, scepticism, opposition, rebellion, demonstration”), in addition to Facebook pages related to Covid-19, where the new rules presented by authorities and their potential breaking is being discussed.