This Master thesis approaches a central theme for modern societies and democracies: media freedom. The following analysis chooses to scrutinise one specific country’s conceptualisation of this...Show moreThis Master thesis approaches a central theme for modern societies and democracies: media freedom. The following analysis chooses to scrutinise one specific country’s conceptualisation of this principle: France. As this study finds and further demonstrates, the French understanding of media freedom relates to a European conceptualisation; categorised in the consequentialist academic trend. Although grouped with the consequentialists, this thesis however decides to further analyse this arguably utopic view on the French case. Precisely, it is interesting to question France’s almost sacrosanct international image of pays des droits de l’homme. However, by questioning this stance, the thesis does not aim to be outrightly sceptic: instead it questions France’s categorisation in the consequentialist group to either conclude by confirming it, or revoking it. Since this analysis can only be succinctly conducted, researches have justified the choice to focus on the Institutional Act n°2009-257, enacted during Nicolas Sarkozy’s term. Thus, the topic is narrowed down to the French perspective of media freedom as to public broadcasting services (PBS). Although later amended with Law n°2013-1028 of November 15th 2013, the relevance of the 2009 Institutional Act thought to deserve a distinct analysis – due to its ‘uniqueness’ in the French PBS legal landscape. To conduct this analysis, Jan Oster’s theorisation is chosen. Indeed, the legal framework proposed by the academic is believed to allow a thorough scrutiny of this 2009 piece of legislation – and the other provisions attached to it. Specifically, a combined politico-legal analysis of this legal text is to be conducted. It is believed that a political sciences insight could help determine what the legal discipline cannot. Attention should be put on the fact that this study accounts as the first to employ J. Oster’s theoretical and methodological framework, so that no previous model is available. Therefore, this thesis’ attempt to use it is a form of experimentation.Show less
The European Parliament elections in the spring of 2014 witnessed the victory of eurosceptic far right parties, especially in France, Denmark and the United Kingdom. Consequently, the incredible...Show moreThe European Parliament elections in the spring of 2014 witnessed the victory of eurosceptic far right parties, especially in France, Denmark and the United Kingdom. Consequently, the incredible ascent of eurosceptic attitudes in the public debate has put the question of the causes of such a development at the forefront of European Union studies. Academia has identified a multiplicity of factors for the formation of eurosceptic attitudes in EU member-states. Indeed, causes for popular anti-EU feelings range from identity attachment, rational economic calculus, level of education, social transnationalism, and reception of political cues. Party-based euroscepticism is conceived to be the result of ideological positioning and politicisation strategies by extreme parties on the political spectrum to reap electoral mandates and gain visibility. The present study offers a general model for political thought formation by approaching euroscepticism as a narrative exercised in the public sphere. Anti-EU discourse is mutually constructed by party competition in the national political arena, the media filter and public civil society. The case study of the Front National’s campaign in 2014, reveals that the party used populist tactics, such as an anti-elite stance, to capture the popular vote. The incorporation of EU issues into its ideological rationale, embodying the defence of national sovereignty, cultural homogeneity and economic self-determination, has amplified the anti-EU discourse in public debate. Yet, populist strategies of the Front National are insufficient in explaining French eurosceptic attitudes. They evolve in a particular climate whereby a narrative of decline is sustained by the media, which taps into individual feelings of insecurity in social, cultural and economic terms.Show less
Since the advent of the 2014 EU Parliamentary Election, the rise of nationalist parties and growing Euroscepticism is highly visible across the continent (European Commission, 2014b). Several...Show moreSince the advent of the 2014 EU Parliamentary Election, the rise of nationalist parties and growing Euroscepticism is highly visible across the continent (European Commission, 2014b). Several studies have tried to find reasons for the increased concern and distrust towards EU policies, among which are the euro-crisis, strict austerity measures and insecurities towards immigrants (Treib, 2014). It is however worth to “look beyond traditional explanations” and look into the role the media might have played and still plays (De Vreese 2007, p. 272). There is a general agreement that the media are an important source of information for the public and therefore also contribute to shaping views on EU politics. Despite this common wisdom, academic literature in that area is scarce and rather fragmented (Hawkins, 2012; De Vreese 2007). The few existing studies, however, suggest that framing in news coverage has a significant impact on people’s opinion and is key to understand Euroscepticism (e.g. Van Spanje and De Vreese, 2014; Hawkins, 2012). Since EU’s citizens and their attitudes are crucial for the future support of the project (Van Spanje and De Vreese, 2011), the topic of this thesis focuses on the role of frames, used in media coverage on EU topics as potential predictors of people’s opinions on the EU. Since journalistic cultures are different across countries and might therefore influence EU citizens differently, findings will be compared across nations. Awareness of these effects can be of practical relevance not only for academics but also for EU policy makers wishing to bridge the communicative gap between the EU’s institutions and its citizens, a starting point to enhance democratic legitimacy.Show less
Since the digital revolution of the early 2000’s, the amount of online personal data has grown exponentially. Thanks to services such as e-mail, online shopping and social media, (private)...Show moreSince the digital revolution of the early 2000’s, the amount of online personal data has grown exponentially. Thanks to services such as e-mail, online shopping and social media, (private) companies gather more and more personal information of their users. This is not only interesting for commercial parties; authorities are, in the context of combating terrorism, more interested in this kind of information. This has also put the right to privacy under a lot of pressure. Data protection in the European Union has been successful, through the Safe Harbor Principles, the EU was capable of creating a framework of rules safeguarding privacy and data protection for US based companies operating in Europe. However, it was not capable of dealing with the rapid changes of the digital revolution and the urge for more security after the nine-eleven terrorist attacks in 2001. Many questions were raised over the effectiveness of data protection in the post nine-eleven era, with the Snowden revelations as the absolute low point. The Snowden revelations have lead to the case Schrems v. Data Protection Officer, where the Safe Harbor Principles were put in question. This thesis attempts to investigate the validity of the Safe Harbor Principles through examining various pieces of case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union. The results are surprising; throughout the years, many inconsistencies and legal uncertainties emerged which do pose a threat to the Safe Harbor Principles.Show less
