Geelmuyden.Kiese

TANKER

STUDIO POLITICS
01.01.2009

The Norwegian Parliament, Stortinget, as a political workshop has disintegrated. GKs survey shows that only one of three representatives views the parliament as the most important political arena. Almost equally many point out the media as the most important while the remaining third perceives the party or other places to be the most important.

From early morning to late night the most profiled representatives run from one radio or TV studio to the next. Parliament work is not given priority and the politicians are jumping up and down at the sight of a TV camera. Thorbjørn Jagland has tried to point out this tendency to make the parliament to a secondary political arena many times. In Magasinet on the 8th of November, Jagland tells the story of how he himself was a victim of these studio politics when he could not attend a debate on Gro Harlem Brundtlands criticism of him: “They summoned a debate in “Redaksjon 21”, the whole clergy was there, no one has the brains to say no to a debate when the principal character can’t attend.”

Studio politics ensures visibility, especially for the opposition, but it is without obligation. The parliament debates on the other hand are almost completely gone. And so are the lobbyists at the parliament. For the first time the GK survey shows that the lobbyism is declining. Only 17 percent of the representatives believe that lobbyism has increased, the rest feel that it is stable or declining. While 3 out of 4 said they received daily requests in 2002, now only 17 percent that say the same. It is obvious that the lobbyists no longer see the parliament as particularly important.

The form of parliamentary system we are now experiencing leads to a more closed political debate. Everyone who has worked in parliament offices knows that the thresholds are high and that it is difficult for outsiders to work their way into the corridors of political power. In the departments an outsider is often looked upon as someone who is disturbing their work.

At the parliament on the other hand, they are received with open arms. As much as 86 percent believe the lobbyists to be resourceful, only 6 percent look at lobby work as an unnecessary load.

In fact, many of the representatives themselves would like to work within PR/lobby. In 2005 there were only 29 percent that said they would like to be a lobbyist, whilst today more than half of them are positive to this kind of work. Life after parliament has started to sink in.

Gunnar Mathisen