Abstract

This book makes a refreshingly empirical contribution to discussions of the European
Union and its democratic deficit, specifically on the possible role of increased transparency
in alleviating the latter. Naurin rightly challenges us to think about transparency and its
effects – to ‘take transparency seriously’ rather than merely assume its panacea-like
effects for European Union democracy and legitimacy. With this in mind, Naurin’s work
focuses on investigating what deliberative democracy theorists label the civilizing effect
of publicity.