ABSTRACT
The Wnal week of the European Parliamentary election campaigns in each country provided an opportunity to examine the media coverage of and media debates concerning a political event at a level above the nation-state. These last elections of the century left an uncertain view of the future of European citizenship. Low turnouts, apathy, and a lack of media debate on EU policies raise the question of when this supranational level of governance will be balanced by public participation, and what role the media might play in this development. Other major studies (Blumler, 1983; Leroy & Siune, 1994) on the structure of European Parliamentary election campaigns and their coverage in the media (referred to in chapter 2) examined campaign frameworks, election involvement, messages, and perceptions in a cross-cultural dimension. In the context of this research, the focus was on the coverage of the elections but with a wider reference to other issues and debates. The coding of news items and articles allowed for a quantitative assessment of news coverage and frequency of reference to particular topics, and a qualitative overview of coverage by national experts facilitated the comparison of national debates. Although the elections represent a process of political participation outside the national sphere, there is no corresponding common sphere of debate that can
and debates about European Union membership while also bringing to the fore some common concerns and debates that reXect growing political and economic integration. Alongside this, the extent to which the electronic and press media carried out a role in the process of electoral participation at the European level is assessed in the various countries.
