Interest Group Influence in the European Commission: Case Study: The 2014 Tobacco Products Directive

Interest Group Influence in the European Commission: Case Study: The 2014 Tobacco Products Directive Public Deposited

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Wall, Lucas
- Affiliation: College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Political Science

Abstract

Trying to understand interest groups and their influence in policy debates has been discussed for a long time discussion in political science. The majority of policy issues do not have high salience, and not many organizations are interested in what happens. However, when looking at issues that are controversial, such as tobacco control, then debates become salient and complex. Applying a single dimensional content analysis to a policy debate, such as the 2014 Tobacco Products Directive can generate more questions than answers. This paper critiques the analyses and findings by Costa et al. 2014 who suggest the tobacco industry’s frames were successful in shifting the European Commission’s policy position in their direction. However, I will argue that the evidence does not match this claim and that therefore a new line of inquiry is needed to reexamine influence within this policy debate: T-Lab software.

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