No. 33

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Parliament in the media society – crossing of parliamentary and media arenas

The weakening of parliaments that has been diagnosed in political science is associated with the changes in the society and structural changes in the political decision-making process. The structural change in the general public, mainly the emergence of the mass media, is an essential challenge for parliamentarianism, as the vital power resources of parliaments lie in functioning external communication.

The parliamentary and media arena cross in two areas of activity: management of public relations, and the shaping of the will and proceeding of the decisions of the parliament. On the example of the Bundestag of Germany, the adaptation processes with the structures of mass media system can be seen in both areas. The boundaries of adapting are in the places where room for negotiations is needed, regardless of the postulate of openness. Besides that, the efforts made for adapting clearly show how the politicians recognise the relationship between publicising and power, and strive to use it in institutional arrangement.

Full article in Estonian

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