Links

European politics can be difficult to follow given that mainstream media coverage is typically insufficient or even inaccurate. Here is a list of useful media and blogs to keep up with European affairs.

European Media

• EurActiv: The single best online resource for understanding the EU, available in 10 national editions.
• EUObserver: One of the best news sources on EU affairs, systematically detailed, informative and neutral (only line).
• European Voice: No doubt the best physical newspaper on EU affairs, weekly, published by The Economist group.
• EuroparlTV: The European Parliament’s official TV website, an interesting and good source, although somewhat limited and occasionally feels “forced”.
• Euronews: The pan-European TV station, neutral, informative and broadcasted in nine languages.
• Le Taurillon: The magazine of Young European Federalists, written in four languages, very committed to the European ideal.
• Open Europe: A very necessary critical think tank with an excellent press summary of the day’s (mostly negative) stories.

European Politics Blogs

• Fistful of Euros: An excellent blog on pan-European affairs, often better than national media on more obscure topics such as politics in the Balkans.
• Charlemagne: The world’s most prestigious magazine’s (The Economist) blog on Europe.
• Brussels Blog: The Financial Times‘s EU affairs blog, intelligent and sardonic.
• Les Coulisses de Bruxelles: A popular, sensationalist blog by Jean Quatremer, a French journalist who has covered for decades Europe. Useful for seeing the more parochial, chauvinist and petty current of French politics.
• Nosemonkey’s EUtopia: Solid blog by a British former eurosceptic.

French Politics Blogs

• Arthur Goldhammer: The best English-language blog on French politics, no better way to introduce oneself to Parisian intrigue.
• La page de Bernard G: Informed and insightful blog on French politics.
• Secret Défense: The premier French blog on Defense issues, informed and informative on the affairs of the French Army, European defense industries and European defense cooperation. See also his old website.

The Moderate Left/Social Democratic Blogs

• Paul Krugman: The economist and Nobel prize winner’s always interesting analyses and ferocious defense of Keynesianism and the welfare state.
• The Crooked Timber: Influential blog by some very intellectual moderate leftist academics. Sometimes too artsy.
• Polly Toynbee: The Guardian‘s feisty and influential columnist.

Other

• Le Courrier international: A Francophone weekly featuring translations of articles drawn from across the world, excellent for getting a sense of international opinions, includes articles from European, Middle Eastern, Russophone newspapers (and others still).
• Nonfiction.fr: Excellent website including not only very detailed book reviews but also in depth analyses of various topics. Written by researchers and academics.
• Lenin’s Tomb: Blog by an intelligent, venomously witty British Communist, good insight into the radical left and the discontents of “liberalism” in that country.
• Sublime Oblivion: Anatoly Karlin’s brilliant, speculative blog on climate change, resource depletion, the coming technological singularity and so on. Wonderful essays on Russian history and its cyclical rises and falls.
• Les Indigènes de la République: France’s most prominent radical anticolonialist group. French equivalent of 1960s and 1970s American Black Power groups.
• Bir Hacheim: Prolific French blog, essentially composed of brief reviews of history books, memoirs and various war-based board games. Very enjoyable, if a reactionary on colonial issues.
• Historicoblog (3): Sporadic posting, but a very solid French blog with in-depth posts on issues sometimes “obscure” in the West (such as the Second Congo War).