Partisan Divide in Coverage of Potential Coronavirus Treatments

Media coverage of the race to find a coronavirus cure has often divided along partisan lines. There are no drugs currently approved to prevent or treat the coronavirus; President Donald Trump recently stated that two specific drugs used in anti-malaria medications — chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine — may eventually provide a base for a coronavirus treatment, which the left and right sides of the media spectrum have reported on differently. Some left-rated outlets have focused on the death of a man who attempted to self-medicate with an apparent fish tank cleaner containing chloroquine phosphate; some right-rated outlets have concentrated on people who have seemingly used hydroxychloroquine to recover from the virus. Other outlets have focused on the facts about how the drugs are currently used, known limitations and side effects, and how they could be used in future COVID-19 treatments.