“Europe Talks But Who Listens?” panel discussion
September 22, 2016
On Tuesday, 20 September we had the great pleasure to host the launch event for our new website.
The event was introduced by our co-President Maurice Fermont who emphasised the continuous evolution of the association. He was followed by our Communications Officer Lorenzo Marchese who gave a brief presentation of our new website. He unveiled its new interface and features, most notably the brand-new vacancies board and the alumni directory. He also confirmed that the website will become accessible soon.
The main discussion of the evening then started. Ariadne Kypriadi, Head of Communications of the LSEAAB, moderated the panel debate with our four distinguished guests: Natasha Bertaud, Coordinating Spokesperson for the Activities of the President Juncker and Policies of First Vice-President Timmermans, Eric Maurice, Editor-in-chief of the EUobserver, Doru Frantescu, Co-founder and CEO of VoteWatch Europe and Brett Kobie, Director & Senior Vice-President for Digital, Social & Creative Strategy of FleishmanHillard Brussels.
Natasha Bertaud argued that the Commission communicates in foreign languages from afar, but certain initiatives, such as the "Juncker for President" campaign, have helped bring the European Union closer to the people. She was followed by Eric Maurice who talked about the public's lack of trust in politicians and the media and how difficult it is to make policy fields such as trade and agriculture feel relevant to the citizens' daily life. On the other hand, Doru Frantescu said that the European Commission's communication capacity has improved, but national politicians, who understand better the local issues, don't help explain the work of the European Union because they see the MEPs as competitors. Finally, Brett Kobie suggested that we should try new approaches and ways of thinking to reach a more diverse audience in terms of age and geographical location.
The panel debate was followed by a lively Q&A and a reception.
We would like to thank once again the speakers for their participation and
Report by: Ariadne Kypriadi
