The portrayal of Greece by the international press during the financial crisis has been seen by many independent observers as very harsh. The Greeks have often been blamed for a myriad of ...international political problems and external economic factors beyond their control. In this original and insightful work George Tzogopoulos examines international newspaper coverage of the unfolding economic crisis in Greece. American, British, French, German and Italian broadsheet and tabloid coverage is carefully analysed. The Greek Crisis in the Media debates and dissects the extent to which the Greek response to the financial crisis has been given fair and balanced coverage by the press and questions how far politics and national stereotypes have played their part in the reporting of events. By placing the Greek experiences and treatment alongside those of other EU members such as Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain, Tzogopoulos examines and highlights similarities and differences in the ways in which different countries tackled the challenges they faced during this crucial period and explores how and why the world's media reported these events.
The portrayal of Greece by the international press during the financial crisis has been
seen by many independent observers as very harsh. The Greeks have often been blamed for
a myriad of ...international political problems and external economic factors beyond their
control. In this original and insightful work George Tzogopoulos examines international
newspaper coverage of the unfolding economic crisis in Greece. American, British,
French, German and Italian broadsheet and tabloid coverage is carefully analysed. The
Greek Crisis in the Media debates and dissects the extent to which the Greek response to
the financial crisis has been given fair and balanced coverage by the press and
questions how far politics and national stereotypes have played their part in the
reporting of events. By placing the Greek experiences and treatment alongside those of
other EU members such as Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain, Tzogopoulos examines and
highlights similarities and differences in the ways in which different countries tackled
the challenges they faced during this crucial period and explores how and why the
world's media reported these events.
There is a lively academic debate concerning US foreign policy in the post-Cold War era and especially after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. Neoconservatism has become a cause celebre in ...the literature of international relations with a variety of scholars disagreeing as to its supposed impact on Washington's world affairs approach and the Bush administration's decision to remove Saddam Hussein, from power manu militari. This thesis is an analysis of the way this political ideology was interpreted in the European elite media. It will be demonstrated how a significant section of key opinion-forming newspapers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy framed neoconservatism during the administration of Bill Clinton and partly that of George W. Bush. There will be an exploration of whether and how newspapers vary in their coverage. The thesis will outline that the influence of the neoconservatives in US foreign policy can be disputed and will suggest that their ideas can be hardly considered as revolutionary ones. It will then focus on the media coverage and will show that the prominence devoted to neoconservatism by the accessed print sources is a relatively recent phenomenon. The findings indicate that the newspapers differed in their representation of the political ideology only in the period before 9/11 when they mainly discussed it in the context of domestic affairs. By contrast, after the terrorist atrocities and especially since 2003 they linked neoconservatism to US foreign policy and largely focused on it - as opposed to competing international relations theories -, representing it in a remarkably similar way. With the exception of The Times, which followed a comparatively balanced approach, they constructed it as a driving force behind George W. Bush's international politics approach and the war on Iraq. The media emphasis on neoconservatism will be attributed to different factors - such the scapegoat theory - which maybe influenced the journalistic work. The general consensus as to their understanding of neoconservatism and its supposed impact will not support the claim of a European public sphere but will be considered as a positive step towards its possible creation.
There is a lively academic debate concerning US foreign policy in the post-Cold War era and especially after the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. Neoconservatism has become a cause celebre in ...the literature of international relations with a variety of scholars disagreeing as to its supposed impact on Washington's world affairs approach and the Bush administration's decision to remove Saddam Hussein, from power manu militari. This thesis is an analysis of the way this political ideology was interpreted in the European elite media. It will be demonstrated how a significant section of key opinion-forming newspapers of Britain, France, Germany and Italy framed neoconservatism during the administration of Bill Clinton and partly that of George W. Bush. There will be an exploration of whether and how newspapers vary in their coverage. The thesis will outline that the influence of the neoconservatives in US foreign policy can be disputed and will suggest that their ideas can be hardly considered as revolutionary ones. It will then focus on the media coverage and will show that the prominence devoted to neoconservatism by the accessed print sources is a relatively recent phenomenon. The findings indicate that the newspapers differed in their representation of the political ideology only in the period before 9/11 when they mainly discussed it in the context of domestic affairs. By contrast, after the terrorist atrocities and especially since 2003 they linked neoconservatism to US foreign policy and largely focused on it - as opposed to competing international relations theories -, representing it in a remarkably similar way. With the exception of The Times, which followed a comparatively balanced approach, they constructed it as a driving force behind George W. Bush's international politics approach and the war on Iraq. The media emphasis on neoconservatism will be attributed to different factors - such the scapegoat theory - which maybe influenced the journalistic work. The general consensus as to their understanding of neoconservatism and its supposed impact will not support the claim of a European public sphere but will be considered as a positive step towards its possible creation.
‘Fuel smuggling is a critical problem: not only because it is estimated to cost €1billion per year but also because it takes place in a period of fiscal difficulty which sees legitimate taxpayers ...paying a heavy, almost exhausting price’. Although this is only an excerpt from a political speech in the Hellenic Parliament, the phrase of former Prime Minister Lucas Papademos is highly symbolic because it sketches out different but interconnected dimensions of the Greek crisis. The world financial crisis is far from over and the Greek problem has been interwoven into it. Along with political economy models, there are two parameters which also contribute to the understanding of the Greek crisis by international media. The first is that the problem of the Hellenic economy is not imaginary, but an existing and serious one. The second parameter is related to the reaction of foreign journalists, who were not familiar with modern Greek culture when they approached developments in the country.
The period which began in October 2009 and is currently in progress in Greece is one
of the most painful and turbulent in decades. The problem the country triggered also
risks leading the eurozone ...down the road to dissolution. To avoid bankruptcy, the
Hellenic Government signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the European
Commission (EC), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) in May 2010 and essentially came under close international scrutiny for the
next years. Greece received a loan of €110 billion and embarked on an attempt to
stabilise its public finances, reform its economy and restore market confidence. Its
main obligations included budget cuts, a reduction in wages and pensions and tax
increases.
1
The economic problem of Greece was not suddenly created in the aftermath of the
national election of 4 October 2009. It had been an existing one which was deepening
over the years but only came to ...surface with the outbreak of the world financial
crisis. The Greek statistic agency, for instance, was continuously publishing wrong
data for the course of the economy. We only learned in October 2011 that the national
economy had started to contract from 2008 onwards. Data presented earlier had
suggested that it was growing normally in this year, thus creating a false image of
its real performance. Media reports published before October 2009 had not extensively
dealt with the economic status of the Hellenic Republic. Although references to it
had been made by journalists, especially in Financial Times, The Wall Street
Journal and Handelsblatt, the country had not been
stigmatised. In general terms, it had been regarded as a normal peripheral state,
suffering from widely known problems hitting countries such as Ireland, Italy,
Portugal and Spain. However, Greece had not been considered as a special case within
the common currency area.
From October 2009 onwards Greece has been of particular interest for the international media. Coverage has been particularly negative for the country and often for its citizens too. It seems that the ...crisis acquired an additional dimension for the Hellenic Republic. Greece has obviously offered a good opportunity for foreign journalists to explore issues such as corruption, bureaucracy, overspending, poverty and unemployment. It has also provided them with the chance to prepare stories synthesised around the fear and uncertainty of Greek citizens for the future of their personal assets and deposits. Greece is correctly observed as the cradle of democracy. The credibility deficit and the paradox of Greek democracy explain why Greece is a special case in the eurozone. The Greek media have also played a significant role in cultivating the misunderstanding between Athens and Berlin.
The Greek crisis seems, at a first glance, like an economic and political problem per
se. Within the context of the European debt explosion, the Hellenic Republic's
weakness has been indeed the worst ...link in the chain of the 17 eurozone members in
terms of specific statistics and numbers. That is why the solution of a voluntary
debt-restructuring was finally qualified by EU leaders as the appropriate remedy
which could maybe save the country and constitute its debts sustainable. The Troika
itself has had to reconsider its projection many times on the course of the national
economy of the country. Within this framework of instability, themes and issues such
as the EU decision for a bailout mechanism, the announcement of austerity measures
and tax rises, the downgrading of Greece's economy by rating agencies and obviously
the decision by Mr Papandreou to call and then subsequently cancel his decision for a
referendum could not but attract the attention of foreign journalists.
The period which began in October 2009 and is currently in progress in Greece is one of the most painful and turbulent in decades. The problem the country triggered also risks leading the eurozone ...down the road to dissolution. In the first months of 2011 the Greek crisis kept unfolding and spreading and uncertainty for the future started to dominate in the euro and market atmosphere. The Greek Government failed to deliver on most parts of its obligations and its reform progress was rather anemic. The revision of the Greek figures in 2004 had not sent a clear signal to Brussels. The economic play from October 2009 onwards had two interconnected dimensions: a Greek and a European one. In the first months after May 2010, the Greek Government indeed began to implement healthcare and pension reforms.
