Öffentliche Anhörungen im Deutschen Bundestag

Public hearings provide a glimpse behind the, often, closed doors of the Bundestag’s committees. At the same time, their usefulness is viewed quite critically in parts of political science research literature as well as in practice itself. This study shows which functions public hearings fulfil in the political process. Building on an examination of all committee hearings between 2002 and 2019, the findings are explored in depth in six detailed case studies. It becomes clear that public hearings are first and foremost a versatile instrument of political communication for parliamentary party groups. As such, they can make an important contri-bution to establishing democratic legitimacy.