Conference, Europäische Akademie, Berlin Grunewald, 28th-30th November 2003

Papers

Contents



Abstracts

Adam, Silke:
Power in public spheres - a network analysis. The discourse on the future of Europe

This article examines the Europeanisation of the debate on the future of Europe within the German quality newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung". Europeanisation can be analysed by studying the power distribution between actors from the EU, other member states, candidate member states, from those outside Europe and national actors. As power is not an actor`s attribute, but rather arises out of the interaction between actors, a power analysis needs a specific conceptualisation of the public sphere. Public spheres are regarded as networks. To study different forms of power (e.g. agenda-setting vs. reputational power) within these networks, the methodology of network analysis is applied. The resulting power distributions are hypothesized to be a shaping factor in the parliamentary-administrative arena of the political process as the public arena has the potential to contribute to the production of legitimation.

[TOP]


Boos, Verena:
Dominion or Democracy? Continuity and Change in the Responses to EC Integration in Scottish and Catalan Newspapers, 1973 - 1993

The press as part of the media landscape contributes to the European public sphere. Research into regional discourses on Europe provides an important complementary perspective to analyses of the EU as a supra-national polity. The most important broadsheets in Scotland and Catalonia have taken different approaches to European integration. La Vanguardia consistently backed European integration while the Scotsman took a sceptical, ambiguous stance in the 1970s and only slowly began to support integration. The article argues that the Scotsman's conversion was informed by positive experiences in the EC and adverse domestic conditions which let the regional dimension come to the fore. La Vanguardia, by contrast, promoted Spanish unity and presented a strand of public opinion which was under the spell of the national magnitude of the democratic transition and entered the EC in a passionate, moral spirit.

[TOP]


Fickers, Andreas:
National barriers for an imag(e)ined European community: The technopolitical frames of postwar television developement in Europe

no abstract

[TOP]


Hille, Jochen:
Do Swiss and Norwegian eurosceptics fight for the same goals? A comparison of arguments and ideologies

Norway and Switzerland are rejecting EU-membership, because of the strong eurosceptic attitudes amongst the majority of the population. The main reason for this is the idealisation of the nation state and a negative image of the EU. Therefore I compare the self- and EU-images of the two major eurosceptic movements in both countries in order to inquire into the differences and similarities among their ideologies. While the Swiss movement 'Action for a neutral and independent Switzerland' (AUNS) is a rightwing populist movement, the Norwegian 'No to EU' is an moderate green-leftist organisation. In spite of these ideological differences both organisations idealise rural life, describe the nation state as being more peaceful, democratic and economically successful than Europe.

[TOP]


Knorr, Antje:
Public Spheres beyond the Nation State: An analysis of European and transatlantic communication in the field of Security and Defence policy

This paper argues that in order to find out about the existence of a European public sphere, other possible forms of Transnationalisation should also be empirically tested. In the first part, the criteria of European-transnational communication are therefore transferred to a transatlantic level. The empirical testing is then conducted by an analysis of several European and American newspapers for the case of Security and Defence policy. A first preliminary data analysis leads to the conclusion that the deepened European integration process over the past years has not yet had a great influence on the Europeanisation of public spheres.

[TOP]


Mahmutoglu, Burcu:
The re-emergence of Cypriot Public Sphere

This paper is an inquiry to the current situation in Cyprus Island. How did people of Cyprus live together? Is there any public sphere or concept of “Cypriot Identity”? Why the people of Cyprus aparted each other’s? Is it possible to have a Cypriot Public Sphere under nowadays circumstances? What are the possible solutions and suggestions to the re-emergence of a Cypriot Public Sphere? If a Cypriot Public Sphere emerged could it articulate to the European Public Sphere? The possible problems and knot points in articulation process.

[TOP]


Nevinskaite, Laima:
Media of the Baltic States in the European Communication Networks

As the Baltic States are on the brink of the EU membership, a question whether and how their public spheres are integrated into the European communication networks, arises. The paper attempts to answer one side of the question by investigating foreign ownership of media, one of the most important elements of the public sphere, in the Baltic States. This examination reveals a pattern of an interrelationship among the media in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and the inclusion of the Baltic media into the Nordic media sphere. The analysis sheds light on a development of a sub-network of European media in the Baltic Sea region.

[TOP]


Novy, Leonard:
Reporting the future of Europe: The EU's future as covered by German and British newspapers

no abstract

[TOP]


Poehls, Kerstin:
Social anthropologist perspectives on the making of a European elite public sphere

This paper investigates the contribution which social anthropology has to make to research a European public sphere in the making. By focussing on the networks tied during postgraduate education, it starts at the individual level. Taking the College of Europe at Bruges/Belgium as an example, Poehls suggests to concentrate on four fields of research: rituals, symbols, knowledge and individual points of view and their development. Large-scale political discourses and initiatives striving for a European demos can be viewed in relation to their impact on individuals and the formation of elite networks.

[TOP]


Reinfeldt, Alexander:
Influencing British Public Opinion on European Integration

From the beginning of their existence, informing the public was an issue for the European Commission and its predecessors - in the member states of the Communities as well as in the United Kingdom. In pursuing the information efforts the supranational acteurs differentiated between various publics: national and European publics; experts, opinion leaders and the broad public. Nevertheless, the information policy of the European executives was mainly aimed at elites. Also the acteurs used the same means of information.

[TOP]


Schulz-Forberg, Rolf-Hagen:
The Meaning of Europe and the European Public Sphere after 1945. Crisis, Negotiation and Change

The development of the Western as well as the Eastern European public sphere from the Rome Treaty to the 'War on Terror' will be analysed through the media. Five 'crisis periods' are identified, in which the media discourse on Europe will be examined and connected to an emerging public sphere. Furthermore, particular attention is devoted to questions of ethics and their mobilisation in connection to the overall discourse on 'European values' as well as to their political use. A strong focus is on the relevant media of each period studied, taking into account the technological development from printed media (newspapers) to radio, film, television and Internet, as well as the power implications of these technological dynamics.

[TOP]



Seidendorf, Stefan:
Europeanization of Identity Discourses: Community of Communication vs. Community of Memory in France and Germany

This paper investigates the possible "Europeanization" of national identity discourses starting from the national level. In differentiating inside the "Public Sphere" discourses of the "community of memory" and the "community of communication", it tries to analyze evolutions within the national public sphere, happening under the challenge of Europe. To understand different types of identity constructions and their different evolution, a case study investigates the two dimensions (tradition / innovation) in four newspapers (Le Monde, Le Figaro, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) in two countries (France and Germany). Results show a European dimension in both debates. Nevertheless, Europeanization of the "innovative" dimension happens much more easily than within the "traditional" dimension. Here, symbols, affective and emotional layers of the discourse are constraints for "Europeanization". A "re-interpretation" has to resonate with older strands of the discourse.

[TOP]


Steeg, Marianne van de:
Does a Public Sphere exist in the EU? An analysis of the content of the debate on the Haider-case

This paper suggests studying the public sphere via an analysis of the contents of a specific debate, i.e. by analysing a certain public discourse. A public discourse can be said to pertain to an EU-wide public sphere in case the following three conditions are met. First, it has to be significantly different from that developed in non-EU countries. Second, differences should not be nationally defined. Third, in one way, or another the debates in the individual newspapers (which provide the fora for a public sphere) should be connected.

[TOP]


Downloadable Papers

Please find below the papers in the alphabetical order of the participants' names
Additionally find the form with the questions for preparing the discussion of the papers, as well as the template (with the formatting instructions) for your paper


PHP

access

27 kB

adam_paper_eupub_031114

139 kB

boos_paper_eupub_031114

66 kB

fickers_paper_eupub_031010

104 kB

hille_initialartikel

103 kB

knorr_paper_eupub_031114

59 kB

mahmutoglu_paper_eupub_031116

116 kB

nevinskaite_paper_eupub_031113

36 kB

novy_paper_eupub_031117

350 kB

poehls_paper_eupub_031114

33 kB

presentation_form

22 kB

reinfeldt_paper_eupub_031114

78 kB

schulzforberg_paper_eupub_031114

101 kB

seidendorf_paper_eupub_031012

80 kB

steeg_paper_eupub_031111

63 kB

template_paper_eupub_031010

24 kB

template_paper_eupub_031012

25 kB

Webmaster | Druckversion