The Good, The Bad and the Indifferent: the Portrayal of the European Union in Media
The Importance of News: Fostering or Compromising EU Reputation?
For most European citizens, the 20th century EU was a distant polity, alien to their everyday errands and delights. With the advent of mass media, however, public opinion about the EU started to mould and solidify from an amorphous and tentative, looming presence to a much more active supranational configuration.
Given the situation, media are indeed crucial providers of information about that distant polity. How else would European citizens obtain information about EU affairs and decisions? Experimental and academic studies have found extensive evidence about the correlation between media rhetoric and public opinion on the EU. An active branch of research has also analysed and proved the considerable effects of media on the process of European integration in general, and on EU policies in particular.
Existing literature underlines the importance of De Vreese and Boomgaarden’s research about media effects on EU attitudes carried out in 2003. Both of them are experts of political communication. De Vreese has focused on how media coverage affects political attitudes and public opinion. Boomgaarden investigates similar topics and, in particular, how media impact electoral behaviour. Together, they have collaborated frequently and contributed significantly to understanding how media framing shapes European citizens' support or scepticism of the EU, especially during moments of political unrest and EU enlargement.
We will cover their main findings in the next paragraphs, expanding the conversation to include critical evaluation of our typical sources of information and encourage our generation to promptly question them.
Not All Publicity is Good Publicity for the EU
Once aware of the importance of information sources in shaping public views and the potential to create an EU framework of reference, we must interpret the tone and content behind EU media coverage. Newspapers and television are consistently listed as main sources of information for the public on political issues, and most research studies EU portrayal in the news considering these same channels.
Analyses focus repeatedly on two main aspects of EU news coverage: visibility and tone. Visibility includes the quantity of news and the placement of EU stories (national, world affairs/ international or European), with most papers placing EU news in the international section, distancing it from readers. Le Monde instead stands out for dedicating a section specifically to European issues. Studies suggest that greater visibility of EU news increases public knowledge and appraisal for the EU. Throughout the last century, the EU coverage has undergone a transformation, making the headlines more frequently and gaining popularity.
However, the tone used in EU coverage is largely negative, with most newspapers presenting a disproportionate amount of negative stories than positive ones. Le Monde and The Guardian had the most neutral coverage according to a 2010 survey, while The Times had the highest proportion of negative stories, reflecting its opposition to the EU. Referring to the same report, UK papers also dedicated the least space to EU coverage, while Le Monde offered the most comprehensive coverage. Moreover, the emphasis on EU bureaucracy in negative traits has contributed to the rise of Euroscepticism across Europe.
These tendencies observed in traditional journalism seem to be reflected by modern channels: the ongoing EUMEPLAT project by prof. Miconi from IULM studies and interprets how today’s media platforms foster or dismantle European identity. Researchers are examining various areas, including national and EU media regulation, the evolution of television systems, the current state of theatrical film distribution, the most popular programs on streaming services like Netflix and the most followed profiles on social media. While this research is not finished yet, preliminary insights are beginning to surface and highlight how media platforms are forging European identity. “We have strong indications that the platformisation – and internationalisation – of today’s media is clearly not working in favour of Europeanisation,” explains prof. Miconi, once again demonstrating the bad publicity surrounding the EU.
The Media Sector: Not Very Mindful, Not Very Demure
To explain the negative publicity around the EU, we must consider media logic, which shapes editorial decisions and determines which stories get to see the light of the day. First of all, media outlets must prioritise a limited number of stories daily, influenced by factors such as available resources and where reporters are positioned. For example, having reporters in Brussels directly impacts how much EU politics a news outlet covers. Unlike Italy that has stationed reporters directly in Brussels, most other European countries have no permanent representative in the EU institutions, physically limiting the possibility of rich foreign correspondence.
Journalists also focus on identity, meaning they tend to feature actors that resonate with their national audiences, leading to a focus on national figures in the news. For instance, German journalists highlight German leaders, while French outlets focus on French ones. Additionally, valence criteria push journalists to prioritise stories about powerful figures, as these stories attract public interest. As a result, European news tends to feature national leaders, especially in larger countries, while, in smaller countries, there is potentially more space for foreign actors.
Furthermore, Koopmans and Statham (research undertaken in 2010) highlight that EU actors are more prominent in debates where the EU holds significant power, such as monetary policy, compared to areas where national practices prevail, like migration. This is due to the "authority-coverage mechanism," where institutions with more authority attract more media attention. However, stronger presence of EU actors in the news can lead to a more pro-European discourse, but it may also provoke a backlash.
Journalists often assume that conflict and drama attract readers. As a result, the media tends to focus on political competition rather than public policy, emphasising disagreements between politicians, parties or countries to provide more palatable stories. Complex issues are simplified or framed as contests, making the personalities involved central rather than presenting the policies themselves. This focus on conflict means that the broader societal impacts of EU policies are rarely discussed in the news.
To complicate things further, most newspapers are tied to political ideologies and parties that influence their editorial content and even the tone of the news, shaping it to promote specific political agendas. In addition to this pressure, other powerful groups such as corporations often control top-down what newspapers cover and how they frame stories.
On the other hand, people also tend to consume news aligned with their own political beliefs, a trend amplified by online communication and the affirmation of identity-focused divisions over the historical class-based voting.
Tentative Steps Forward
Let’s take a peek at upcoming trends and potential alternatives to current media.
Harmonising media coverage across Europe by creating a pan-European channel is not feasible due to language and cultural barriers. Nevertheless, promoting neutrality in news is a more viable goal that the EU is pursuing, as seen in initiatives like the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) - Regulation (EU) 2024/1083. This regulation addresses the fragmented national regulatory systems related to media freedom, pluralism and editorial independence. It improves the functioning of the internal market for media services and prevents the emergence of obstacles to the functioning of media service providers across the EU.
If waiting for rhetoric to shift in media is especially disheartening and nerve-wrecking for EU enthusiasts, they can propel the transformation by grasping the extent of their power as consumers: demanding objective and high-quality content is key and it is rather accessible and realistic. The major takeaway is in fact that both media creators and consumers share the responsibility to adjust narratives and promote EU values.
This is the duty we should shoulder as citizens, just as a group of intellectuals tried by founding "The New European”, a pan-European newspaper in the UK, which emerged after Brexit to retaliate its positions and grant voice to 48% of UK voters.
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