Grasshoppers against Ants or Malfunctions of Capitalism? The Representation of the European Economic Crisis in the Main Italian Newspapers

Abstract

How has the Eurozone crisis been covered in the Italian press? Who has been identified as bearing the main responsibility for the crisis? What is the image of the European Union (EU) that has emerged from this coverage? This article aims to answer such questions through a content analysis of four Italian newspapers (Il Sole 24 Ore, Corriere della Sera, la Repubblica and il Giornale) during 11 periods between 2010 and 2012. In our perspective, the topic we address is particularly important for two reasons: first, because the continuing Euro crisis is the most significant threat facing the EU's very existence since its formation, and second, because the media, through the coverage they provide, contribute to build both Europe and the support it needs to prosper.

Key Words:

• Euro crisis
• newspapers
• content analysis
• Italy

Notes

¹ In recent research, de Vreese highlights how the most important constraints and challenges perceived by journalists and editors when covering European affairs fall into four areas:

1. The first, ‘distance and time’, refers to the EU decision-making procedure in which key decisions are made in EU power centres such as Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg. This category was repeatedly identified as a barrier.

2. The second, ‘access and terminology’, relates to the institutions of the EU. These institutions are considered closed and bureaucratic and the terminology used by the EU is perceived to be complex and inaccessible.

3. The third, ‘internal disagreement’, refers to the fact that journalists assigned to European stories found that editors in their central newsrooms were critical and difficult to approach with ideas for European stories.

4. The fourth and final challenge emerged from a (perceived) lack of audience knowledge about and interest in European affairs. Editors and journalists alike expressed concern over the difficulty of providing intelligent news coverage with in-depth information about a topic for which audience awareness, interest and understanding were considerably lower than in the case of domestic politics (de Vreese, 2003).

² The research was coordinated by Robert Picard, director of research at the Reuters Institute at the University of Oxford.

³ These inclusive dates are:

1. 4–18 February 2010: the EU summit (11–12 February) related to the role of the European governments and the IMF in any intervention;

2. 25 April–9 May 2010: pegged to the Eurozone members and IMF agreement for the 100 billion Euro intervention for Greece (2 May);

3. 9–23 December 2010: pegged to the EU Contract change (16 December);

4. 25 July–18 August 2011: the ECB asks Italy for more austerity measures (5 August);

5. 28 September–12 October 2011: pegged to the Greek general strike against austerity measures (5 October);

6. 19 October–2 November 2011: pegged to the EU summit boosting the stability fund, extending new aid and requiring banks to raise new capital (26–27 October);

7. 5–19 November 2011: pegged to Berlusconi's resignation/Monti's appointment (12–13 November), includes French austerity measures;

8. 19–30 November 2011: pegged to the EC Green Paper on stability bonds and the proposal to bring national budgets under EC control (23 November);

9. 16 May–5 June 2012: pegged to the EU summit (23 May) to boost growth and balance austerity, attention on Spain, and UK governmental meetings to protect the UK financial system;

10. 18 June–5 July 2012: Spain formally requests assistance (25 June), Merkel calls Eurobonds ‘economically wrong and counterproductive’ (27 June), and the EU Summit on Debt Crisis (28–29 June); and

11. 8–22 July 2012: pegged to Merkel's affirmation of the need for adherence to budget targets and European monitoring (15 July).

⁴ There is an abundance of literature on the framing process. Some of the main studies are by Entman (1993), Scheufele (1999) and de Vreese (2003).

⁵ Only two articles were classified in the ‘Other’ category. The index of balance Eq reaches the high level of 0.89, where Eq varies from 0 (minimum balance) and 1 (maximum balance).

Among the numerous studies available that focus on the relationship between the process of framing and the media, we make reference to those of Entman (1993) and Gamson (2003).

⁶ The European frame was dominant from 27 April to 8 May 2010, from 17 to 29 May 2012 and from 23 June to 5 July 2012, periods characterized by the agreement reached by the members of the Eurozone and the IMF for a 100 billion Euro intervention in Greece (2 May 2010), the EU summit to boost growth and balance austerity (23 May 2012), Spain's formal request for assistance (25 June 2012) and the EU summit on the debt crisis (28–29 June 2012). The domestic frame was dominant from 30 July to 8 August 2011, during which time (on 5 August) the ECB asked Italy to introduce austerity measures. Finally, the foreign frame was dominant from 1 to 15 November 2011 and from 10 to 21 July 2012, periods marked by the introduction of austerity measures in France (12–13 November) and Merkel's assertion that countries in the Eurozone should respect the economic stability objectives established by the treaties (15 July), respectively.

⁷ According to Privitera (2012), it is possible to detect the presence, in Europe, of an embryonic European public sphere characterized by a unique political agenda and converging interests, which becomes most evident when political activities are carried out exclusively by European institutions.

⁸ Association test between geopolitical frame and newspapers: χ² of Pearson = 34.03; χ² significance of p = 0.000; V of Cramer = 0.11.

⁹ Eq in this case reaches a value of 0.92, even higher than that registered in the previous distribution.

¹⁰ On the basis of the distinction between the idea and practice of European integration, Kopecky and Muddle (2002) find it useful to define positions, behaviours and parties using the terms Euro-enthusiasts, which describes those who favour both the idea and practice of integration; Euro-sceptics, which describes those who approve of the ideals, but are critical of the practice; Euro-pragmatists, which describes those who approve of the practice, but not the ideals; and Euro-rejects, which describes those who are opposed to both.

¹¹ With regard to this, Marradi (1997, p. 76) says: ‘The coefficients [ … ] do not give any information on the ties between specific categories [ … ]. As far as it can seem fast, elegant and “scientific” to mention only coefficients, no coefficient can substitute the patient and careful comparison of percentages and the corresponding marginals (and/or observed and expected frequencies) when the two variables are categorical.’

¹² Association test between the actors deemed responsible for resolving the crisis and the newspapers: χ² of Pearson = 27.06; χ² significance of p = 0.008; V of Cramer = 0.11.

¹³ In this way, the newspapers appear to share the vision put forward some years ago by many commentators, such as Schmitter (2000), according to whom the process of constructing Europe should favour not the erosion or disappearance of the state's power, but, rather, the emergence of a new form of multilevel interstate governance.

¹⁴ Here, we refer in particular to the classification of levels of satisfaction expressed by EU countries with regard to the way in which European democracy works. On this front, Greece came in last place (with 20% totally satisfied), followed by Portugal (23%), the UK (34%), Spain (35%) and Italy (36%) (EU average: 44%; data from Autumn 2012) (European Commission-Standard Eurobarometer 78, 2012). For more on the increase in Euro-scepticism and what the authors call ‘disenchanted Europeanism’, see Bellucci & Conti (2012).