Ida Koivisto – författare

Transparency has become a new norm. States, international organizations, and even private businesses have sought to bolster their legitimacy by invoking transparency in their activities. This growth in popularity was made possible through two interconnected trends: the idea that transparency is inherently good, and that the actual meaning of the term is becoming harder and harder to pin down. Thus far, this has remained undertheorized. The Transparency Paradox is an insightful account of the hidden logic of the ideal of transparency and its legal manifestations. It shows how transparency is a covertly conflicted ideal. The book argues that counter to popular understanding, truth and legitimacy cannot but form a problematic trade-off in transparency practices.

This book questions the theoretical premises and practical applications of transparency, showing both the promises and perils of transparency in a methodologically innovative way and in a cross-section of policy instruments. It scrutinizes transparency from three perspectives - methodologically, theoretically, and empirically - both in the specific context of the EU but also in the wider context of modern society in which transparency is embraced as an almost unquestionable virtue. This book examines the ways in which transparency practices can make institutions visible and stands out for its methodological self-reflection: to fully understand the irresistible call for transparency in our governing institutions, we must reflect on our own relationship with it. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of transparency studies, democratic legitimacy, global governance, governance law, EU studies and law and public policy more widely.