The article verifies the relevance of studying the characteristics of media perception in the context of
mediatization of socio-political life, describes the features of studying the phenomenon of media competence within the
framework of a cognitive approach to the analysis of political behavior. The article discusses the results of an empirical study
devoted to the study of the role of media competence in the perception of messages about socio-political transformations
taking place in Russia in connection with countering the spread of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19).