Archive
Year: 2009
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Swedish Council Presidency Tweets
June 9, 2009
Sweden has launched its Council presidency website: http://www.se2009.eu/ And the country renowned for the openness of its government has become the first Council Presidency to use Twitter. You can follow the press secretaries of both the prime minister and minister for financial markets as well as the Deputy Antici and the environment minister's advisor. Trust the Scandinavians to drag Council kicking and screaming into the 21st century. James...
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Manufacturing crunch time?
June 8, 2009
Manufacturing. You know, making stuff. Our DC based friend Pat Cleary is a believer in it. With giants like GM falling to their knees on both sides of the Atlantic and export economies in Asia still feeling the after effects of the bout of cold turkey in US consumption he's picked a great time to seek to start a global online community to discuss the issues facing manufacturing the world over. ManufacturingCrunch endeavors to be...
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Elections à la polonaise
June 5, 2009
Europe is doomed. Seriously. It must be, after all, Mr. (Jarosław) Kaczynski, our former PM, famous for having an identical twin and starring in a movie ages ago, seems to think so. “Why doomed?” one might ask. Well, the reason is simple: Europe can be strong only if it is a Christian union and the problem, according to Mr Kaczynski, is that today it is anti-Christian and, more specifically, anti-Catholic. It was somehow obvious that...
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Tipping Over
May 29, 2009
A while ago tipping points were all the rage. Malcolm Gladwell’s book had captured the public imagination and points were to be seen tipping all over the place. I was reminded of this when I saw in our recent survey that 24% of MEPs write a blog. My first reaction was, is that all? Here is an ideal way of reaching out to the European citizen, particularly the young, the majority of whom are not...
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Expenses Scandal to Dominate Britain’s European Elections
May 27, 2009
Just a week to go before European elections, and British prime minister Gordon Brown launches his personal manifesto. It is our task, he says, to persuade people that millions of new jobs will depend on higher levels of co-operation between EU members. He calls for a European growth strategy and advocates a much enhanced role for the EIB and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. He says that he has spoken to President Barroso...
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65% of MEPs consult Wikipedia at least twice a week. So what?
May 25, 2009
In our recent survey of the online habits of Members of the European Parliament there were a number of statistics that stood out. None more than the fact that 65% of MEPs consult Wikipedia at least twice a week for legislative work. Reactions from readers to this particular stat varied from "LOL" through to "scary".Yet the more grounded amongst you simply asked "so what?" This post seeks to provide some initial answers to this question...
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A look back at turn of the century Brussels
May 22, 2009
Image by Jungle_Boy via Flickr Thanks to Aart van Iterson, a former colleague now at Cambre Associates, who points out by email that our current survey of the use of the internet by Members of the European Parliament is not the first time we have undertaken to research how digital tools are being used in Brussels. Back in 2000 the then GPC (even then an Omnicom company, but at that stage still to become part...
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Ahh Italians!
May 19, 2009
"Ahh Italians!" This is the most common comment that I get when I talk about the European election in Italy with friends and colleagues. But what do they actually mean by stressing this plural noun, “Italians”? It seems almost that all the Italian national political habits and stereotypes can be summed up in one word; at least this is the common feeling here in Brussels. In that “Ahh Italians” there are all the things people...
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How MEPs Use the Internet: Where is the Dialogue?
May 19, 2009
How to communicate better with the people of Europe? That’s one of the great challenges faced by all European institutions. It’s especially crucial for those who represent us in the European Parliament. When those 785 newly elected members take their seats on July 14, how will they relate to those they represent? Through speeches? press releases? newsletters? public meetings? How many will use the internet? Fleishman-Hillard has taken the temperature in the outgoing parliament. It...
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Euronews on the digital trends study
May 19, 2009
European lawmakers underuse the internet according to new research. The findings show that while three quarters of MEPs use their personal websites to reach the electorate, only a minority understands the potential of using online technologies to help them interract with people. Only half visit blogs once a week or more, and two thirds have never heard of the social networking tool Twitter. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5SLQaIOH9M&feature=PlayList&p=E50CFF3B2537597C&index=0...