European Public Sphere

The development of a fully fledged European Public Sphere is seen by many as the solution to the legitimation crisis the European Union is suffering today. It is conceived as a space in which a Europe-wide debate about the current economic, social and political crises can take place and through which solutions can be developed.
This book proposes a new multi-disciplinary approach to discuss the European Public Sphere, arguing that it should be approached as a complex and interlinking concept, considering issues such as identity, citizenship building and multi-level governance structures and actors, and that it should not be analysed merely from the traditional perspectives of information and communication policies.
The volume presents both academic papers and more policy-oriented contributions, offering perspectives from scholars, politicians, consultants and administrators to give the reader a truly multidisciplinary understanding of the European Public Sphere.

Autorentext

Luciano Morganti is Assistant Professor at Vesalius College and Senior Researcher at IBBT/SMIT, Vrije Universiteit Brussels. He is the Chair of the International and Intercultural Communication Section of ECREA.
Léonce Bekemans holds the Jean Monnet Chair for Globalisation, Intercultural Dialogue and Inclusiveness in the EU at the University of Padua, where he is academic coordinator of the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence and collaborates with the Interdepartmental Centre on Human Rights.

Inhalt

Contents: Laurent Thieule: Foreword. Communicating Europe: Going Local - François Heinderyckx: Foreword. European Communication Scholars, European Public Sphere - Luciano Morganti/Léonce Bekemans: Introduction. Towards a Multidisciplinary Approach to the Comprehension of the European Public Sphere - Luc Van den Brande: Public Sphere(s) and Space(s) in Europe - Jostein Gripsrud: Critical Ideas and Reflections on the European Public Sphere - Carmina Crusafon: The European Public Sphere. An Overview on Perspectives of Identity and Citizenship Building - Simon Moore/Sean McDonald: New Borders, New Citizens. Virtual Communication Strategies for Remaking European Union Citizenship - Andreas Hepp/Swantje Lingenberg/Anke Offerhaus/Johanna Möller/Monika Elsler/Anne Mollen: Europe Beyond the Crisis? Citizens' (re)actions on the Multi-segmentation of the European Public Sphere - Lucia Vesnic-Alujevic: The European Parliament's Online Communication Strategy. Creation of the European Public Sphere - Stephanie Jo Kent: Homolingualism and the Interaction Taboo. Simultaneous Interpretation in the European Public Sphere - Joan Ramon Rodriguez-Amat/Sarah Fröb: The Forbidden Policies of Identity. The Social Responsibility of Business - Luciano Morganti/Leo Van Audenhove: Communication and Information Strategies and Policies for the European Public Sphere. Between Rhetoric and Facts - Chiara Valentini/Bo Laursen: The Mass Media. A Privileged Channel for the EU's Political Communication - Annett Heft/Barbara Pfetsch: Conditions of the Emergence of a European Public Sphere. Political Actors and Mass Media Under Scrutiny - Jan Bierhoff: The EU Information Machine. High Time for Refuelling - Simon Gadras: Public Sphere and Political Communication. How Does the Public Sphere Evolve with the Development of ICTs in French Local Politics? - Marinella Belluati: The Local Communication Flow as a Strategic Resource in the Construction of a European Public Sphere - Jamal Shahin/Georgios Terzis: Multilevel Governance and the European Public Sphere - Rachel Barlow: The Process of Accountability. A Justificatory Link for the Role and Components of a European Public Sphere - Gerhard Michael Ambrosi: The European Public Sphere and the NUTS. An Approach Towards Multilevel Activation of the European Citizenship - Luigi Martignetti: Asymmetries, Mediated Communication and Conflicts in Horizontal and Vertical Relationships in the European Public Sphere - Luca Barani: A Policy-based European Public Sphere. The Underpinnings of the Europe of Experts - Luis Bouza García: The Contribution of Civil Society to the European Public Sphere. The Case of the Debates in the European Constitution (2002-2005).