faculty of technology, policy and management these are the words of hans de Bruijn, professor of policy administration and they hold true irrespective of whether your subject is a major infrastructural project or the migration debate. Should you present the tweede maasvlakte port development as an industrial estate built out at sea or as the engine for economic and ecological development? and are turkish and moroccan immigrants fellow citizens or part of an islamic intifada? a conversation about framing and reframing. In alliance with the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, TPM organises a series of masterclasses and practical tutorials. On 13 January 2010, a masterclass was held on the subject of population decline. During the event, professor of policy administration Hans de Bruijn examined the question of what happens if political parties politicise this issue. He outlined how you can frame the subject and the consequences that this can have for the potential success of policy measures. The end of January saw the publication of his book 'Geert Wilders in debat', in which he describes the process of framing and reframing in the political arena. Reasons enough for an interview with this professor whose earlier publications include a book on the rhetoric of Barack Obama. Different languages One of the things that I said during the masterclass was that you can talk about any subject in various different languages, explains De Bruijn. Take the subject of population decline, which is currently more of an issue in specific regions of the country, such as north-eastern Groningen or Parkstad Limburg. If you use policy language for example, you can talk about how to preserve public facilities, such as a workable public transport system, in areas with falling population figures and how to deal with new construction plans and infrastructural projects. In the political arena, however, a different language is spoken. Here, it is more about giving a meaning to these types of developments and it helps if you can capture the essence of a complicated issue in a key message. This is known as framing. A possible way of framing this situation is to say that 'population decline leads to new divisions in society'. In turn, this can make citizens who live in areas hit by population decline feel excluded and increase their aversion towards The Hague. This can have a major impact on the policy debate. Hand-out or Hand-up? Framing, or political marketing, comes in all shapes and sizes. Examples include metaphors and analogies - 'we do not want another Vietnam' is a frame that has proved especially powerful during virtually every American military action since Vietnam - or messages that are continually reiterated, such as those of the PVV on Islam, or powerful one-liners. A good example of the latter is a well-known frame regularly used by Arend Jan Boekestijn in the debate about development cooperation. The VVD campaigns for the budget in this area to be reduced. Roughly translated, Boekestijn says 'you should give poor people a hand-up not a hand-out'. This is a hugely powerful frame. Its message resonates and sounds highly logical. It also puts opponents, in this case the minister, on the defensive. He has to then go on to explain that he is not providing hand-outs, but indeed a hand-up. If a VVD politician is able to cite one or two examples of where hand-outs were actually given, he has won the debate. Difficult job The power of a good frame is that it can give you the upper hand over your opponent. Consider the frame used by the Liberal opposition that the present Cabinet is patronising. For example, D66's Alexander Pechtold says 'Minister Klink insists that women breast-feed their babies for longer and the Cabinet would prefer it if we refrained from shopping on Sundays. Every week there's yet another example'. If this kind of announcement Viii/1 15 03 2010 In this issue: 3 Two TPM-alumni in the spotlight 4 Inaugural addresses: Cees van Beers Lóri Tavasszy Martin de Jong 5 TPM student Mei Ling Tan joins the Kauffman Global Scholars Program: Business internship in the US 6-7 Roundtable discussion on Climate Summit 8-9 New professors: Patrick Hudson Paulien Herder Sybe Schaap Marja Elsinga 10 Dissertations iGov Research Institute: Summer School on digital government 11 Professor profile 12 Curius Ask TPM Agreement between the IPSE Studies group and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science The IPSE Studies group has entered into an agreement with the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. This agreement concerns studies on the effectiveness and efficiency of policy on childcare, labour agree ments, employment relations, and social security. The IPSE Studies group is one of the 6-8 parties to whom studies on these topics have been awarded. Initially the agree ment is for a period of 2 years. Fellowship for Xander Koolman Xander Koolman PhD, associate professor at the section IPSE Studies, has been selected for the Harkness fellowship 2010-2011. This prestigious fellowship is meant for ambitious researchers to research certain themes in health care. The fellowship enables these researchers to carry out their research in the United States for one year. Xander Koolman will focus on the exchange between justice and efficiency. The Harkness fellowship is funded by the Commonwealth Fund and the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. It's all about the message and how you put it across continued on page 2
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