'Europe' in the News: A Cross-National Comparative Study of the News Coverage of Key EU Events

In: European Union politics: EUP, Band 2, Heft 3, S. 283-307

Abstract

This study is a cross-nationally comparative investigation of the news coverage in Britain, Denmark, & the Netherlands of three major EU events: (1) the January 1999 first-step introduction of the euro, (2) the June 1999 European Parliamentary elections, & (3) the December 2000 summit in Nice. The visibility of the three events, the news agenda, & the role played by national news organizations in covering the EU events are examined. The study draws on content analyses of the most widely watched main evening television news programs as well as interviews with news practitioners in the three countries. The results showed that news coverage of European affairs is cyclical, peaking during the events but hardly visible before & after. A number of cross-national differences were found: overall, Danish news devoted most attention to the EU events, followed by Britain & the Netherlands. News organizations differed in the editorial policy & the degree of effort invested in covering the events. Danish, & to some extent the British & Dutch, public broadcasters exerted more discretion in the choice of issues covered & assumed a proactive agenda-setting role compared with their private counterparts. The findings are discussed in the light of the role of news in public opinion formation processes about EU affairs. 4 Tables, 3 Figures, 1 Appendix, 38 References. [Copyright 2001 Sage Publications Ltd.]