Lobbying On The German Federal Level: The Unknown Shift Through Digital Transformation
Lobbying On The German Federal Level: The Unknown Shift Through Digital Transformation

Summary/Abstract: Against the background of technological change, increasing information flow, and a rising number of communication channels, new opportunities and challenges are arising forcommunication between interest groups and federal policymakers in Germany. To keep upwith further technological developments and the increasingly fast-paced political communication system, it is crucial to analyze lobbying in the context of digital transformation ingreater detail.Lobbying as a traditionally non-public part of political communication has been a challenging setting for research. Understanding the general contours of this activity is an important public need - especially for digital lobbying, where a lack of academic research exists. Thispaper therefore provides an in-depth analysis with emphasis on both communicating sides- lobbyists and federal parliamentarians of the German Bundestag as well as their employees.This analysis is based on a qualitative, explorative stance drawing from 15 semi-constructed interviews and an enriching ethnographic approach. The first authors´ exclusive experience from working inside a lobby agency and also inside the German Bundestaghelped this study to contribute to lobbying research with the focus to better understand howthe effect of digital transformation in lobbying is perceived in Germany.

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