Mettre en débat la science, à quelles fins ?

Résumé Fr En

Pourquoi, alors même que l’OPECST n’a pas vocation à promouvoir le débat public autour des sciences et technologies, les auditions publiques contradictoires y sont-elles aujourd’hui incontournables ? L’article retrace leur histoire et met en évidence les raisons pragmatiques, stratégiques et épistémiques de leur montée en puissance comme dispositif de consultation au sein de cette institution.

Since the beginning of the 2000s, contradictory public hearings are essential at OPECST. How has it come to consider them as a device of choice for consulting the main actors who are concerned by scientific or technological choices? This article traces the history of contradictory public hearings at OPECST and identifies the main reasons for their increasing popularity. It explains their privileged role in the practices and discourses of OPECST by three types of reasons: pragmatic – they effectively support the rapid development of its activities –, strategic – they strengthen its ability to take stance on topical issues – and epistemic – they produce nuanced and contradictory information. Lastly, this article argues that contradictory public hearings are a way for OPECST to promote a controlled debate on science and technology, at the service of representative democracy.