There is an ongoing public debate about mathematics education. This dialogue influences policymakers as well as mathematics teachers who are affected by these public ideas. Consequently, exploring the public debate, for example, by studying news media, is relevant for understanding teaching and learning in mathematics and also pertinent for researchers to actively participate in the debate about mathematics education. Representations of mathematics education, which emerged in a study of three national newspapers in Sweden, were explored. Articles relevant to the study were found in systematic searches in a media archive every fifth year between 1992 and 2017. Findings show that the construction of mathematics education in Swedish newspapers is multifaceted and complex, foregrounded by achievements, measurements and various forms of teaching. Other parts of the construction involve teachers wanting to arouse positive feelings, but their attempts are often unsuccessful. Whilst the construction of mathematics education is increasingly varied, the resulting positive and negative feelings and the tensions between representations contribute new insights, which are important to the field.