Europäische Öffentlichkeit als Kontrollsphäre: Die Europäische Kommission, die Medien und politische Verantwortung [Broschiert]

 

 

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After the introduction of the Euro in twelve states of the European Union, the economic integration of the continent has reached unprecedented levels. Yet, the low voting turnout at European Parliament elections and the No vote of the French and the Dutch electorate on the Constitutional Treaty are only illustrations of the long-standing lack of public support for and citizens involvement in supra-national governance. European leaders have sought to address these legitimacy problems before the accession of new members by agreeing on an ambitious agenda for institutional reform, re-shifting of competences and constitution making. However, it is increasingly argued that all attempts of democratising the EU and its institutions will help little as long as a European public sphere for political discourse is lacking. In the absence of such a public sphere as a forum for and stimulus of transnational discussions over the goals of European governance, voting procedures remain largely ineffective for the purpose of closing the legitimacy gap. EU institutions would operate within a democratic vacuum, leaving little scope for further attempts of deepening political integration.

This study shares and develops the argument that the emergence of a transnational public sphere is central to bridging the legitimacy dilemmas of European integration. Yet, it takes issue with the prevalent view according to which there is no evidence for its existence. This study makes the case for revising some of the theoretical foundations and empirical conclusions prevalent in some of the writing about a transnational public sphere. It clarifies, for instance, the characteristics expected from legitimating public debate concerning EU governance, distinguishing between three functions of political communication in and through a public sphere: 1) Delineating communitarian boundaries and identity, 2) making governance responsive to citizens social preferences, and 3) holding political actors accountable for their conduct in office. Depending on the scope and nature of supra-national governance, a public sphere would need to take different forms. Even though progress towards the first goal of identity building may well remain sluggish in the short and medium term, the second and third function of a European public sphere requires a lesser degree of transnational homogeneity to be effective.

The empirical part of the book explores whether and to what degree a transnational public sphere actually exists, which is capable of holding EU institutions to account for their actions. Using a system-theoretical approach to political communication, the study narrows the research focus to the interplay of media scrutiny and political accountability in the Brussels public space during the Commissions presidency of Jacques Santer (1995-1999). Three cases of alleged norm violations through the European Commission are examined in more detail: Corruption in the field of Tourism, cover-up in the BSE case and nepotism in the Echo/Cresson case. The finding is that transnational media scrutiny improved substantially during this period, culminating in the role of investigative journalists in enforcing the resignation of the Santer-Commission in March 1999. Based on these results, the study singles out the Commission and the accredited press for closer analysis. While the Commissions public accountability remained constrained by internal and external factors, the Brussels press corps became much more investigative and transnational in orientation and working methods. It is argued that the transnationalisation of media scrutiny is not only a case-specific phenomenon, but can be traced back to the commercialisation and politicisation of EU news, which began in the early 90s and accelerated substantially in the mid-1990s particularly in Northern European countries. Despite these changes in the coverage of the EU, the study also highlights differences between Northern und Southern European media in the normative assessment of political scandals.

In the concluding chapter a two-pillar theoretical framework is advanced to explain the transnationalisation and europeanisation of political discourses, drawing on transactionalist and neofunctionalist theories of integration. With respect to the legitimacy dilemmas of European governance, the author puts forward a less pessimistic view about the emergence of a transnational public sphere, despite the persistence of cultural diversity, multi-lingualism and nationally fragmented media markets. At the same time the findings suggest that the mediatisation of EU politics will increase the visibility of many intra-European conflicts, which, until recently, have been largely contained inside national public spheres.

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