Medialisering av Sveriges Riksdag? - Svenska riksdagsledamöters medieanpassning

Abstract

A Mediatized Swedish Parliament? Media Adaption among Swedish MPs

The purpose with this article is to investigate if and how the members of the Swedish Parliament adapt to media. Do they adapt to media in line with cartel theory and its expectations on elite control and homogenization? Or, do they adapt in line with Kitschelts’ expectations on individualization and fragmentation? In the article, based on mediatization theory, we study how the MPs have adapted to media over time, from 1985-2010, with a special focus on 2010.

The results indicate that there is an elite among the MPs, who perceives an increasing influence of media and who also uses and adapts to traditional media to an increasing extent. This perception is prevalent among all ‘elite’ MPs in all parties. The MPs in the top use media-related activities to an increasing extent; while the other MPs use them to a lesser extent.