"Banal" Europeanized National Public Spheres? Framing the Eurozone Crisis in the European Elite Press

Authors

  • Katharine Sarikakis University of Vienna
  • Asimina Koukou University of Vienna
  • Lisa Winter University of Vienna

Keywords:

European public sphere, crisis, media, discourse, banality

Abstract

The article discusses the findings of a frame analysis of the eurozone crisis in the elite national press in member states of the European Union (EU). Its premise is that the eurozone crisis generates “banal” Europeanized national public spheres. In this study, the leading press in the four European countries under scrutiny ultimately function as a producer of homogeneous narratives that favor a particular form of political economic behavior, but also dismiss, silence, and marginalize “story lines” that derail from the set course. Thereby, the study shows the existence of a public sphere, which is salient, seamless, and, ultimately, banal. The crisis, we argue, in particular, has given rise to a no-thrills inclusion of EU dimension in all mediated debates in the elite press.

Author Biographies

Katharine Sarikakis, University of Vienna

Katharine Sarikakis: is Jean Monnet Chair and Professor of Communication Science with specialisation in Media Governance, Media Organisation and Media Industries at the Dept. of Communication Science, University of Vienna and Director of the Media Governance and Industries Research Lab. 

Asimina Koukou, University of Vienna

Asimina Koukou: is a Phd Candidate at the Department of Communication, University of Vienna, researcher at the Media Governance and Industries Research Lab and the recipient of the “Ludwig von Bertalanffy Phd Scholarship”, awarded by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (BCSSS).

Lisa Winter, University of Vienna

 Lisa Winter is a PhD Candidate at the Department of Communication, University of Vienna. She is researcher at the Media Governance and Industries Research Lab.

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Published

2018-09-13

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Section

Articles