In this article, we use the case of a government scandal in Sweden to develop a theoretical perspective by which to understand the moral nature of political scandals. We draw on insights from Durkheim's sociology of morality and point, inter alia, to the ritual character of scandals. However, in contrast to most Durkheimian readings, the perspective presented does not presume the existence of a moral consensus. The scandal is understood as a confrontation between various systems of norms. Rather than confirming a given moral order, scandals provoke moral positioning and help in clarifying — and dramatizing — lines of difference or conflict. The empirical case studied is a government scandal in Sweden in 2006 (Nannygate) that forced two government ministers to resign after less than 10 days in office when it was revealed that they had not paid their TV licence and, moreover, had bought `black' (untaxed) services. This transgression provoked a massive public reaction at the time.
Adut, A. (2005) `A Theory of Scandal: Victorians, Homosexuality, and the Fall of Oscar Wilde', American Journal of Sociology111: 213-48.
2.
Ahrne, G. and Papakostas, A. (2002) Organisationer, samhälle och globalisering: tröghetens mekanismer och förnyelsens förutsättningar. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
3.
Alexander, J. (1988) `Culture and Political Crisis: "Watergate" and Durkheimian Sociology', in J. Alexander (ed.) Durkheimian Sociology: Cultural Studies, pp. 187-224. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
4.
Bauman, Z. (1993) Postmodern Ethics. Oxford: Blackwell.
5.
Bellah, R. (ed.) (1973) Emile Durkheim on Morality and Society. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
6.
Boli, J. (2006) `The Rationalization of Virtue and Virtuosity in World Society', in M.-L. Djelic and K. Sahlin-Andersson (eds) Transnational Governance: Institutional Dynamics of Regulation, pp. 95-118. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
7.
Collins, R. (2005) Interaction Ritual Chains. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
8.
Cotterrell, R. (1999) Emile Durkheim: Law in a Moral Domain. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
9.
Couldry, N. (2003) Media Rituals: A Critical Approach. London: Routledge.
10.
Durkheim, E. (1973) `The Dualism of Human Nature and its Social Conditions' , in R. Bellah (ed.) Emile Durkheim on Morality and Society, pp. 149-63. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
11.
Durkheim, E. (1982) The Rules of Sociological Method. New York: Free Press.
12.
Durkheim, E. (1984) The Division of Labor in Society. New York: Free Press.
13.
Durkheim, E. (1993) Ethics and the Sociology of Morals. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books.
14.
Durkheim, E. (1995) The Elementary Forms of Religious Life. New York: Free Press.
15.
Durkheim, E. (2002) Moral Education. New York, NY : Dover Publications.
16.
Ellickson, R. (2001) `The Evolution of Social Norms: a Perspective from the Legal Academy', in M. Hechter and K.-D. Opp (eds) Social Norms , pp. 35-75. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.
17.
Financial Times (2006) `Honeymoon Is Already Over for Sweden's New Premier' (18 October).
18.
Gamson, J. (2001) `Normal Sins: Sex Scandal Narratives as Institutional Morality Tales', Social Problems48: 185-205.
19.
Gluckman, M. (1963) `Gossip and Scandal', Current Anthropology4: 307-16.
20.
Goffman, E. (1959) The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. New York, NY: Doubleday.
21.
Goffman, E. (1967) Interaction Ritual. New York, NY: Doubleday.
22.
Jacobsson, K. (2006) `Durkheims moralsociologi och välfärdsstaten', Scores rapportserie2006:3. Available at: www.score.su.se .
23.
Jacobsson, K. and Sandstedt, E. (2005) `Upprördhet och moralisk ordning: Skandalen om politikernas lyxpensioner', in G. Sjöstrand (ed.) FiffelSverige, pp. 132-51. Malmö: Liber.
24.
Johansson, P. (2004) I skandalers spår. Minskad legitimitet i svensk offentlig sektor. Göteborgs universitet: Förvaltningshögskolan.
25.
Midtbø, T. (2007) Skandaler i norsk politikk. Oslo: Universitetsforlaget.
26.
Neckel, S. (2005) `Political Scandals: An Analytical Framework', Comparative Sociology4: 101-11.
27.
Oscarsson, H. (2005) `Långsiktiga värdetrender', in S. Holmberg and L. Weibull (eds) Lyckan kommer, lyckan går, pp. 39-52. Göteborg : SOM-Institutet.
28.
Parsons, T. (1968) The Structure of Social Action. Vol. 1: Marshall, Pareto, Durkheim. New York, NY: Free Press.
29.
Sandemose, A. (1934) En flykting korsar sitt spår: berättelsen om en mördares barndom. Stockholm: Tiden .
30.
Skatteverket (2006) Purchasing and Performing Undeclared Work in Sweden - Part 1: Results from Various Studies. 2006:4B. Stockholm: Skatteverket .
31.
Skatteverket (2007) Svartköp och svartjobb i Sverige - Möjliga åtgärder mot svartarbete och bidragsfusk 2007:1. Stockholm: Skatteverket.
32.
Szasz, A. (1986) `The Process and Significance of Political Scandals: A Comparison of Watergate and the "Sewergate" Episode at the Environmental Protection Agency', Social Problems33: 202-17.
33.
The Times (2006) `Nannies and TV Rattle High-Flyers' (13 October).
34.
Thompson, J.B. (2000) Political Scandal. Power and Visibility in the Media Age. Cambridge: Polity.
35.
Turner, V. (1981) `Social Dramas and Stories about Them', in W. J. T. Mitchell (ed.) On Narrative, pp. 137-64. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
36.
Wuthnow, R. (1987) Meaning and Moral Order. Explorations in Cultural Analysis. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
37.
Wästerfors, D. (2005) `Skandalresponser', in G. Sjöstrand (ed.) FiffelSverige, pp. 152-66. Malmö : Liber.
38.
Quotations from the following letters to the Prime Minister (by their post room numbers): SB2006/8182, SB2006/8207, SB2006/8306, SB2006/8382, SB2006/8401, SB2006/8418, SB2006/8441, SB2006/8699, SB2006/8897, SB2006/9651.
