About the ‘de-democratization’ of Europe: democracy, Media and political corruption

In this paper we want to draw a picture of the changes in European societies and the role played by the Media in the so-called de-democratization, where the issue of political corruption has gained high visibility particularly in southern European countries. The mainstream Media have played a crucial role, especially in southern countries, by exhaustively repeating the dominant discourse of the inevitability of the austerity “measures” and of individual responsibility in the financial collapse of countries. In this process, political corruption emerges as a national phenomenon within globalized standards (JOHNSTON, 2005), monitored by international bodies of prevention, as well as by national institutions. The methodology focuses on documentary and bibliographical revision, as well as on the analysis of discourse (VAN DIJK, 2008; 2012) and contents (CUNHA, 2012). The conclusion points to the role of the mainstream Media in the construction of the image of “bankruptcy” of national democracies, from the visibility and treatment conferred to the issue of corruption, as well as on the acceptance by European citizens of the inevitability of “austerity” policies carried out.

Keywords:
European crisis (2008); Democracy; Media Analysis; Corruption; Journalism