Populisme mot elitisme: teoretiske utfordringer og et måleproblem

This article contributes to the literature by focusing on the conflict between elitism and populism, the measurement of the conflict and the role the conflict plays in public opinion. Surprisingly little attention has been paid to elitism. By limiting the perspective by focusing on a conflict between populism and non-populism, we tend to overlook that many non-populists are elitists. Cas Mudde's definitions of populism and elitism serve as starting point. Based on data from the European Values Survey collected in Norway in the fall of 2018, we try to respond to these questions. The conflict between populism and elitism seems to be of secondary importance to most Norwegians. The average Norwegian can neither be described as a populist nor an elitist. Thin populism and elitism work as attitude-enhancers in relation to some but not all political issues

Die EU-Volksabstimmungen in Österreich, Finnland, Schweden und Norwegen: Verlauf, Ergebnisse, Motive und Folgen: Die vorliegende vergleichende Studie der EU-Volksabstimmungen 1994 in Österreich, Finnland, Schweden und Norwegen ist das Ergebnis eines Gemeinschaftsprojektes. Eine überarbeitete Fassung dieser Studie erscheint in der Ausgabe 19/2(1995) der Zeitschrift "Integration"

Abstract: This paper analysis the 1994 EU referenda in Austria, Finland, Sweden and Norway in a comparative perspective. It shows that the results were, to some extent at least, related to how pronounced the respective elite consensus was on the necessity or desirability of EU membership. It also shows that in all cases the main motivation of the Yes voters was economic. The paper goes on to analyse the regional and social variations in voting patterns. In the concluding chapter some of the medium- and long-term effects of the referenda debates and results on Austrian, Finnish and Swedish government policy within the EU are outlined.

Die EU-Volksabstimmungen in Österreich, Finnland, Schweden und Norwegen: Verlauf, Ergebnisse Motive und Folgen

This paper analysis the 1994 EU referenda in Austria, Finland, Sweden and Norway in a comparative perspective. It shows that the results were, to some extent at least, related to how pronounced the respective elite consensus was on the necessity or desirability of EU membership. It also shows that in all cases the main motivation of the Yes voters was economic. The paper goes on to analyse the regional and social variations in voting patterns. In the concluding chapter some of the medium- and longterm effects of the referenda debates and results on Austrian, Finnish and Swedish government policy within the EU are outlined. [author's abstract

Widening or Closing the Knowledge Gap? The Role of TV and Newspapers in Changing the Distribution of Political Knowledge

The public has gradually become more dependent on the mass media for their political information as alternative channels of political communication have been marginalized. Political knowledge is not equally distributed, and according to the knowledge gap hypoth - esis, the gap between the most and least knowledgeable is likely to widen due to the pattern of media consumption, the different content of printed media and TV, and the abilities of the audience as linked to educational differences. Most of the empirical research on the knowledge gap hypothesis has been done in the USA, a media system very different from those of the Nordic countries. The strong tradition of PB TV and the high rate of newspaper consumption make the Norwegian media environment favourable for political knowledge gain, but it may, for the very same reasons, lead to a widening knowledge gap, according to the knowledge gap hypothesis. In the present paper, the impacts of TV and newspaper consumption on the distribution of political knowledge are studied. Two hypotheses are tested: TV exposure as leveller and newspapers exposure as enhancer of the knowledge gap. The empirical analyses are based on the 1997, 2001 and 2005 Norwegian election studies

Medierte politiske skandaler: Sårbare politikere - usårbare partier?

Abstract In his book Do Mediated Political Scandals Affect Party Popularity in Norway? Midtbø describes how scandals end political careers but rarely harm parties. This goes against common sense. The volume and negative tone in the media’s coverage suggest otherwise. Opinion polls reflect how people lose trust in parties. My aim is to explain this paradox. Two hypotheses are discussed: the party-favoritism hypothesis argues that people tend to overlook and forget about scandals that have hit their preferred party. The personalization hypothesis focuses on media content. Political scandals are rarely treated as political issues. The focus is on the personal drama, the politician’s moral downfall. The empirical analyses are performed on a survey material collected in 2012. Only the party-favoritism hypothesis is supported

Widening or Closing the Knowledge Gap? The Role of TV and Newspapers in Changing the Distribution of Political Knowledge

The public has gradually become more dependent on the mass media for their political information as alternative channels of political communication have been marginalized. Political knowledge is not equally distributed, and according to the knowledge gap hypothesis, the gap between the most and least knowledgeable is likely to widen due to the pattern of media consumption, the different content of printed media and TV, and the abilities of the audience as linked to educational differences. Most of the empirical research on the knowledge gap hypothesis has been done in the USA, a media system very different from those of the Nordic countries. The strong tradition of PB TV and the high rate of newspaper consumption make the Norwegian media environment favourable for political knowledge gain, but it may, for the very same reasons, lead to a widening knowledge gap, according to the knowledge gap hypothesis. In the present paper, the impacts of TV and newspaper consumption on the distribution of political knowledge are studied. Two hypotheses are tested: TV exposure as leveller and newspapers exposure as enhancer of the knowledge gap. The empirical analyses are based on the 1997, 2001 and 2005 Norwegian election studies

Johannes Andersen og Lars Torpe (red.), Demokratisk og politisk kultur. Rids af et demokratisk medborgerskab, Herning: Systime, 1994, 254 s.

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Populisme mot elitisme. Teoretiske utfordringer og et måleproblem

Artikkelen retter søkelyset mot konflikten mellom elitisme og populisme, utvikler en operasjonalisering av denne motsetningen og vurderer hvilken rolle motsetningen spiller i opinionen. I strømmen av litteratur om populisme er det lite fokus på elitismen. Med et enøyd blikk framstår konflikten som en strid for og mot populisme, en overser lett at mange anti-populister er elitister. En risikerer også å overvurdere utbredelsen av populismen. Cas Muddes definisjoner av tynn populisme og elitisme er utgangspunkt for denne opinionsstudien. Data fra European Values Survey i Norge kaster lys over dette. Motsetningen mellom elitister og populister framstår som en sekundær holdningskonflikt. Folk flest er verken populister eller elitister. Både tynn populisme og elitisme virker som holdningsforsterkere i forhold til noen stridsspørsmål

Reddet finanskrisen den rødgrønne regjeringen i 2009?

Et sentralt argument innen teorien om økonomisk stemmegivning, er at regjeringer blir belønnet med gjenvalg når økonomien utvikler seg positivt og straffes når økonomien utvikler seg negativt. Utfallet av de siste tre valgene i Norge synes å motsi dette. I 2001 og 2005 tapte regjeringen til tross for en sterk økonomisk utvikling. I 2009 ble regjeringen gjenvalgt til tross for finanskrisen. Vi argumenterer for at folks forventninger påvirker deres vurderinger, og at mediene spiller en avgjørende rolle når det gjelder å forme folks inntrykk av den økonomiske utviklingen og derigjennom forventningene til regjeringens innsats. I 2001 og 2005 hadde mange velgere forventninger ingen regjering kunne innfri. I 2009 opplevde regjeringen en «politisk nådetid»: velgernes forventninger til den økonomiske utviklingen var lavere enn det regjeringen hadde mulighet til å innfri. Det teoretiske argumentet underbygges av en empirisk analyse i to trinn. I første omgang gjennomføres en innholdsanalyse for å vise medienes bilde av den økonomiske utviklingen mellom høsten 2007 og valget i 2009. Resultatene viser at finanskrisen dominerte mediebildet i flere måneder. Funnet brukes til å modellere endringer i oppslutning om partiene mellom høsten 2007 og valget. ARIMA-analysen støtter argumentet om at finanskrisen endret styrkeforholdet mellom partiene tilstrekkelig til å sikre regjeringen gjenvalg