Search

This paper is concerned with re-imaginings of 'Europe' following the accession to the European Union (EU) of former 'Eastern European' countries. In particular it explores media representations of post-EU accession migration from Romania to the United Kingdom in the UK and Romanian newspaper press. Todorova's (1997) notion of Balkanism is deployed as a theoretical construct to facilitate the analysis of these representations as first, the continuation of long-standing and deeply embedded imaginings of the 'East' of Europe and, second, as a means of contesting these discourses. The paper explores the way in which the UK press construct Balkanist discourses about Romania and Romanian migrants, and then analyses how the Romanian press has contested such discourses. The paper argues that the idea of the 'East' remains important in constructing notions of 'Europe' within popular media geographies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices among the growing low-fares airlines (LFAs) flying between mainland Europe and the United Kingdom. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining a content analysis of 22 airlines’ documentation with key-informant interviews with 11 airlines including three of the four market-leading LFAs. The research discovered evidence that LFAs were aware of the need to act more responsibly but how far intentions resulted in action was difficult to establish. To date the examination of LFAs has relied heavily on secondary sources and perspectives external to the firm. The firms’ own CSR-related texts do not represent a reliable basis for examining CSR among LFAs; they have a high degree of fragmentation and variable quality. In-depth interviews showed that while there is more CSR activity than is made public, incomplete knowledge was a more significant problem than bias or spin. Very few LFAs had conducted a systemic audit of CSR-related activity. Integrative approaches are required to overcome the limitations of single methods, to contribute towards a fuller understanding of responsibility among LFAs, and to inform debate on whether it is necessary to regulate in order to encourage sustainable development in this high-growth sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union is often seen as a laboratory for a post-national polity. Leaving aside important discussions regarding exclusionary citizenship practices at the European level, this article draws attention to the on-going importance of member states' citizenship traditions, which constrain the development of post-national citizenship in the EU. Considering the cases of Germany and the UK, the article shows how longer-standing citizenship traditions continue to play an important role in mediating relations between citizens and migrants. This, we suggest, remains the case despite changes to citizenship law over the past decades that have brought the two traditions closer to one another. Specifically, the article examines the on-going influence of each citizenship tradition with reference to political debates surrounding migration since 11 September 2001. It argues that divergent processes of 'securitising' migration reflect the respective citizenship traditions of the two member states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]