ABSTRACT

This chapter addresses the primary research questions and assumptions to be dealt with and describes the data used and the methods applied. It presents the main descriptive findings and discusses the evidence gathered and its main implications for an understanding of the Europeanization of public debates. The European influences on national debates might be beneficial for the success of the European Employment Strategy's (EES's) concerted approach towards problem solving. However, it is to be expected that this hidden hand and the streamlining of national governments related to it might be responsible for the unease of citizens about the course of European integration and the shrinking autonomy of national policymaking. The chapter focuses on the impact of the EES on mass-mediated public discussions on unemployment issues during its first term. It deals with the assumption of a denationalization of public debates, with particular emphasis on what has been called vertical Europeanization.