Revolving doors and democratic challenges

Public relations consultants perform a range of roles. One of these roles is to be an advisor in lobbying – or ‘public affairs’ as it is called in the branch lingo. In the Nordic countries consultancies mainly see their role as advisors, in some contrast to professional lobbying firms in the US. However, this does not exclude more direct back stage lobbying on behalf of clients. The business idea is to sell their staffs knowledge of how political decisions best can be influenced. The clients, the principals who pay the bills, are most typically corporations and branch organisations, but also include interest groups and even municipalities who want to influence government decisions. In this political marketplace, former politicians, journalists and officials have found new career opportunities as well-paid lobbying consultants. Based on experiences from Norway and Sweden this paper investigates, analysis and discusses the relations and interactions between influential actors engaged in lobbying and mediated agenda setting.