Numeri | Rivista di Digital Politics

Politiche Virali

1/2021

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FOCUS

Mauro Calise, Virus contro Virus
Leonardo Morlino, Ripensare la rappresentanza: la manipolazione digitale
Daniela Piana, Augmented democracy. More open, less free?
Gilberto Capano, Rincorrere, rincorrere, rincorrere. Anti-Covid Italian Style
Susanna Sancassani, Dalla Multiversity alla Netversity
Fortunato Musella, Amministrazione 5.0

SAGGI

Maurizio Ferraris, Documanità. Istruzioni per l’uso
Federica Nunziata, Il platform leader
Paolo Natale, Il terzo paradigma: lo studio del web

WEB REVIEWS

Valentina Reda, Web Reviews. Cosa, come, perché
Mauro Santaniello, Sunburst. La grande eclissi della cybersecutity Usa
Marco Valbruzzi, Il dilemma delle presidenziali Usa 2020
Luigi Rullo, Corti online

Leader e/o Partiti

2/2021

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FOCUS

Mauro Calise, Tecnopartiti
Marco Valbruzzi, C’è un PD digitale. Negli Usa
Francesco Raniolo, Valeria Tarditi, Rivoluzione digitale e trasformazioni organizzative dei partiti
Paolo Gerbaudo, Social media activism and the funnelling of participation
Robin Piazzo, Connective campaigning: Ground-wars in the digital age
Sofia Eliodori, Trump’s populism and the Twitter diplomacy
Martina Carone, Matteo Cavallaro, Giovanni Diamanti, Claudio Riva, Donne ed elezioni, gioie e dolori
Matteo Giardiello, Populismi digitali al tempo del Covid-19

SAGGI

Susanne Ristow, Cultural virology. The principle of virus in modernity and the digital era

WEB REVIEWS

- Davide Azzolari, Valeria Marina Borodi, Diego Garusi, Il Forum degli Incel: la costruzione del consenso politico nella manosfera italiana
- Massimiliano Panarari, Il Leviatano digitale e il neototalitarismo soft

Didattica Online

3/2021

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FOCUS

Mauro Calise, Valentina Reda, Governare l’e-learning
Mark Brown, Eamon Costello, Enda Donlon, Digital education as social practice: Major trends shaping online learning futures
Susanna Sancassani, Platform thinking e università: verso la netversity
Mina Sotiriou, Michele Giovanardi, The role of private and public educational providers in the digital post-Covid world
Chris Dede, Yong Zhao, Punya Mishra, Curtis J. Bonk, The Silver lining for learning webcasts as a bottom-up driver of global educational innovation
Martin Wirsing, Dieter Frey, Agile governance for innovating higher education teaching and learning
Giuseppe Galetta, La digital education delle Forze armate italiane: modello attuale e prospettive future

SAGGI

Mauro Santaniello, La regolazione delle piattaforme e il principio della sovranità digitale
Rita di Leo, Appunti per una teologia della Rete

WEB REVIEWS

Luigi Rullo,La nuova dieta informativa al tempo del digitale
Ruth Kerr,From learning innovation to digital distance education

Amministrazione 5.0

1-2/2022

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FOCUS

Fortunato Musella, Digital regulation: come si cambia la Pubblica amministrazione
Gianluca Sgueo, The paradox of «Low-Fi» digital public services
Giorgia Nesti, Gli Innovation lab: nuovi spazi pubblici per l’innovazione digitale e la sperimentazione digitale
Federica Cacciatore, Fabrizio Di Mascio, Alessandro Natalini, Telelavoro o smart working? Il caso delle autorità indipendenti ai tempi del Covid-19
Carla Acocella, Alessandro Di Martino, Il rinnovamento delle competenze nell’amministrazione digitale
Lucio Todisco, Paolo Canonico, Gianluigi Mangia, Andrea Tomo, Pasquale Sarnacchiaro, Rafforzare i processi decisionali nella Pubblica amministrazione: la percezione dei dipendenti pubblici del ruolo dei social media
Armando Vittoria, Verso una burocrazia legale-digitale?
Giuseppe Borriello, Gaia Fristachi, Stato (d’assedio) digitale e strategia italiana di cybersicurezza
Sabrina Tranquilli, Il nuovo citoyen européen nell’epoca del Data governance act

SAGGI

Valentina Reda, Arizona dreamin’. L’innovazione digitale delle università
Daniela Piana, Luca Verzelloni Epistemic communities meet communities of practices

WEB REVIEWS

Raffaella Fittipaldi, Intellettuali online
Vinicio Brigante, La dematerializzazione dei servizi e degli spazi urbani: un modello perennemente incompiuto
Gianluigi Spagnuolo, Il procedimento automatizzato: il caso dello Sportello unico per le attività produttive (Suap)
Sara Concetta Santoriello, Il Meta-diritto dell’oversight board

Monocratic cyber(in)security

3/2022

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FOCUS

Fortunato Musella, Digital regulation: come si cambia la Pubblica amministrazione
Gianluca Sgueo, The paradox of «Low-Fi» digital public services
Giorgia Nesti, Gli Innovation lab: nuovi spazi pubblici per l’innovazione digitale e la sperimentazione digitale
Federica Cacciatore, Fabrizio Di Mascio, Alessandro Natalini, Telelavoro o smart working? Il caso delle autorità indipendenti ai tempi del Covid-19
Carla Acocella, Alessandro Di Martino, Il rinnovamento delle competenze nell’amministrazione digitale
Lucio Todisco, Paolo Canonico, Gianluigi Mangia, Andrea Tomo, Pasquale Sarnacchiaro, Rafforzare i processi decisionali nella Pubblica amministrazione: la percezione dei dipendenti pubblici del ruolo dei social media
Armando Vittoria, Verso una burocrazia legale-digitale?
Giuseppe Borriello, Gaia Fristachi, Stato (d’assedio) digitale e strategia italiana di cybersicurezza
Sabrina Tranquilli, Il nuovo citoyen européen nell’epoca del Data governance act

SAGGI

Valentina Reda, Arizona dreamin’. L’innovazione digitale delle università
Daniela Piana, Luca Verzelloni Epistemic communities meet communities of practices

WEB REVIEWS

Raffaella Fittipaldi, Intellettuali online
Vinicio Brigante, La dematerializzazione dei servizi e degli spazi urbani: un modello perennemente incompiuto
Gianluigi Spagnuolo, Il procedimento automatizzato: il caso dello Sportello unico per le attività produttive (Suap)
Sara Concetta Santoriello, Il Meta-diritto dell’oversight board

(E)lezioni digitali

1/2023

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FOCUS

Marco Valbruzzi, L’età delle cyber-elezioni: dal voto elettronico alla digitalizzazione elettorale
Paolo Feltrin, Giuseppe Ieraci, Facilitating voting and electoral participation in Italy. On some possible measures to contrast involuntary and imposed abstentionism
Giuseppe Borriello, «Spid vote»: fast democracy and digital identity for citizens in Italy
Domenico Giordano, Maria Cristina Antonucci, La strategia della normalizzazione: la campagna elettorale social di Giorgia Meloni alle elezioni politiche del 2022
Luca De Luca Picione, Digital politics and voting geography. Potential connections between online storytelling and election results in the Campania regional elections
Federica Nunziata, La politica degli influencer
Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo, Elezioni e social network: gli effetti della politica (ultra) pop sulla generazione Z
Laura Minguzzi, Uno spettro si aggira nella comunicazione politica: lo spettro del populismo in Rete

SAGGI

WEB REVIEWS

- Valentina Reda, Il sondaggio è morto? Viva il sondaggio. Conversazione con Nando Pagnoncelli
- Andrea Scavo, Laura Caldarella, Federica Ferri, Eva Sacchi, Leader e partiti: analisi della comunicazione su Twitter nella campagna elettorale più social di sempre
- Claudio Esposito Scalzo, Il mercato unico digitale in Europa: big tech e politiche pubbliche

Open Access

2/2023

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FOCUS

Marco Valbruzzi, L’età delle cyber-elezioni: dal voto elettronico alla digitalizzazione elettorale
Paolo Feltrin, Giuseppe Ieraci, Facilitating voting and electoral participation in Italy. On some possible measures to contrast involuntary and imposed abstentionism
Giuseppe Borriello, «Spid vote»: fast democracy and digital identity for citizens in Italy
Domenico Giordano, Maria Cristina Antonucci, La strategia della normalizzazione: la campagna elettorale social di Giorgia Meloni alle elezioni politiche del 2022
Luca De Luca Picione, Digital politics and voting geography. Potential connections between online storytelling and election results in the Campania regional elections
Federica Nunziata, La politica degli influencer
Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo, Elezioni e social network: gli effetti della politica (ultra) pop sulla generazione Z
Laura Minguzzi, Uno spettro si aggira nella comunicazione politica: lo spettro del populismo in Rete

SAGGI

WEB REVIEWS

- Valentina Reda, Il sondaggio è morto? Viva il sondaggio. Conversazione con Nando Pagnoncelli
- Andrea Scavo, Laura Caldarella, Federica Ferri, Eva Sacchi, Leader e partiti: analisi della comunicazione su Twitter nella campagna elettorale più social di sempre
- Claudio Esposito Scalzo, Il mercato unico digitale in Europa: big tech e politiche pubbliche

Digicracy

3/2023

LEGGI SU IL MULINO

FOCUS

Marco Valbruzzi, L’età delle cyber-elezioni: dal voto elettronico alla digitalizzazione elettorale
Paolo Feltrin, Giuseppe Ieraci, Facilitating voting and electoral participation in Italy. On some possible measures to contrast involuntary and imposed abstentionism
Giuseppe Borriello, «Spid vote»: fast democracy and digital identity for citizens in Italy
Domenico Giordano, Maria Cristina Antonucci, La strategia della normalizzazione: la campagna elettorale social di Giorgia Meloni alle elezioni politiche del 2022
Luca De Luca Picione, Digital politics and voting geography. Potential connections between online storytelling and election results in the Campania regional elections
Federica Nunziata, La politica degli influencer
Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo, Elezioni e social network: gli effetti della politica (ultra) pop sulla generazione Z
Laura Minguzzi, Uno spettro si aggira nella comunicazione politica: lo spettro del populismo in Rete

SAGGI

WEB REVIEWS

- Valentina Reda, Il sondaggio è morto? Viva il sondaggio. Conversazione con Nando Pagnoncelli
- Andrea Scavo, Laura Caldarella, Federica Ferri, Eva Sacchi, Leader e partiti: analisi della comunicazione su Twitter nella campagna elettorale più social di sempre
- Claudio Esposito Scalzo, Il mercato unico digitale in Europa: big tech e politiche pubbliche

Digicracy II

1/2024

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Numeri precedenti

FOCUS

- Valentina Reda,L’Ai digital education e la sfida della (iper)personalizzazione
- Luigi Rullo, (Open)Ai saga
- Gianluigi Spagnuolo, Artificial intelligence and the end of administrative proceedings
- Daniele Battista, Comunicazione politica e intelligenza artificiale: un bilancio tra partecipazione e manipolazione
- Michele Barbieri,A subtle hypocrisy: insights into Italian politics’inertia on the counter-disinformation policy
- Camilla Volpe, Guido Anselmi, Vincenzo Laezza, Social sanctions during disasters. The Italian case of coronavirus on Twitter
- Sara Concetta Santoriello, Agostino Stavolo, La mobilitazione digitale dei millennial. La comunicazione politica di Elly Schlein dal 2013 al 2023

SAGGI

WEB REVIEWS

Abstract: La rivoluzione digitale e le trasformazioni organizzative dei partiti

Francesco Raniolo, Valeria Tarditi

DIGITAL REVOLUTION AND ORGANIZATIONAL TRANSFORMATIONS OF PARTIES

The article proposes a reinterpretation of party typologies, starting from a criterion of relevance identified in the transformations of communicative ecologies. The article focuses on the impact generated by new digital information and communication technologies (Icts) in changing operational environments of parties. In this framework, we consider the opportunities Icts offer in terms of innovation potential not only with reference to communication, but also to other functional and organizational aspects. In particular, it is highlighted how the absorption of new technologies can generate different levels of innovation (in the organizational models of parties) on a continuum between «sustainable innovations» and «disruptive innovations». The former, typical of established parties, imply an instrumental conception of new Icts as resources for the effective performance of certain functions, without particular organizational consequences; the latter, instead, which can be found in some new parties born in the age of the Internet, are linked to a constructivist conception of Icts which assume the role of frames that incorporate radical and innovative visions of political reality. Adopting a dynamic perspective, the article therefore proposes to integrate the concept of «original model» considering a further factor, namely that of technological imprinting. The technological dimension, in fact, plays a crucial role in the twenty-first century in influencing the construction and organizational evolution of parties, offering opportunities but also establishing conditions for change and opening new risks for the quality of democracy.

KEYWORDS: Political Parties, Sustaining/Disruptive Innovations, Original Model, Organizational Model, Typology.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/101942

Abstract: Social media activism and the funnelling of participation

Paolo Gerbaudo

SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVISM AND THE FUNNELLING OF PARTICIPATION

To understand the way in which social media have influenced the transformation of protest and politics it is important to get to grips with the spatial and organisational transformation of forms of mobilisation that has been facilitated by the diffusion of new platforms and apps. To this end in this article I will reflect on and expand the concept of choreography of assembly introduced in my first book Tweets and the Streets, as a means to capture the way in which social media concur in the process of creation of events, and the construction of the space of mobilisation. I will argue that the new forms of action that are associated with social media and in particular the format of the flash mob, involve the idea of the protest event as a moment of assembly of individuals that are otherwise socially and spatially dispersed. In this context, the construction of the event is not just a manifestation of the protest movement that exists in other forms but something more radical: the precipitation of an online crowd into a physical gathering. This precipitation is filtered through a number of operations, such as the fixing of specific times and places where it is due to occur, the present of various instructions that are meant to guide the process of gathering and finally the narratives and symbols that accompany this process. Movement leaders in this context appear in the form of choreographers, namely as «namers», «placers» and «programmers» of a movement which while relying on the collaboration of manifold individuals is nevertheless stamped with the initial instructions, the «concept» that has been established by the initial group of creators. This view of protest as the result of a process of social media construction can help us better understand what happens in the genetic phase of a social movement and appreciate the importance of the moment of concept-development and design of the movement performance, thus overcoming the usual opposition between organisation and spontaneity and showing how rather the two act in concert.

KEYWORDS: Social Media, Activism, Mobilisation, Sales Funnel, Movements, Political Communication

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/101943

Abstract: Connective campaigning: Ground-wars in the digital age

Robin Piazzo

CONNECTIVE CAMPAIGNING: GROUND-WARS IN THE DIGITAL AGE

This paper aims to analyze the forms taken by digitally enabled ground campaigns for political elections in the last fifteen years in Anglo-Saxon countries. First of all I will develop a theoretical framework allowing a deeper understanding and the categorization of the different cases of digitally enabled ground campaigns. The first step is the revision of the categories of collective and connective action proposed by Bennet and Segerberg (2013), in order to develop the concept of connective campaigning. I will then turn to integrating Flanagin, Bimber and Stohl’s (2006, 2012) concepts of interactivity and engagement within Stromer-Galley’s (2014) controlled interactivity framework, to provide a new theoretical framework useful to compare different forms of digital management of interactions within connective campaigns. The article also develops the concepts of digital and human infrastructure, in order to distinguish the different components of connective ground campaigns. Once the theoretical frame is completed, the article analyses four case studies of connective campaigns: Howard Dean’s primary campaign; Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008; Bernie Sanders’ campaign for the Democratic Party primary in 2016; and finally Labour Party’s campaign for the general election of 2019, with a specific focus on the app My Campaign Map developed by Momentum. The comparative analysis shows that all these campaigns combine high personalizability in the level of individual involvement with a medium level of interactivity and tightly controlled engagement. This confirms the results of previous research by Stromer-Galley (2014), according to whom the constraints of electoral competition lead organizers to manipulate the affordances of digital technologies in order to reduce the participants’ margins of organizational autonomy; moreover this article adds to Stromer-Galley’s reading a specific focus on the interrelation between digital and human infrastructure as affecting both engagement and interactivity patterns.

KEYWORDS: Campaigning, Connective Action, Digital Infrastructures, Participation, Political Parties.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/101944

Abstract: Trump's populism and the Twitter diplomacy

Sofia Eliodori

TRUMP’S POPULISM AND THE TWITTER DIPLOMACY

After the electoral defeat of Donald Trump in 2020, the «populist moment» in the West seems to have taken a break. It is now time to reflect upon the effects that this particular period has had – and will have – in the future of international politics and the possible decline of liberalism. This paper aims to start a conversation on this topic, beginning from the analysis of the legacy of Donald Trump in American foreign policy-making. In order to interpret the 45th President’s foreign policy approach, a general framework – related to the characteristics of his specific kind of populism – will be adopted. The thesis is that the traits of Trump’s populism are nativism, anti-globalism, and isolationism; those facets applied to American foreign policy influenced the perception of change of the international role of the United States, being no longer the hinge of the global liberal order. Above all, the focus of the theoretical investigation will be the connection between his foreign policy decisions and statements and his peculiar use of the so-called Twitter diplomacy. Based on this perspective, the paper underlines the functions that his «social routine» of digital political communication played in American foreign policy through the global spread of his political thinking. Indeed, former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, declared that at the time he was in charge he used to print the President’s tweets early in the morning to schedule his daily agenda of foreign policy and diplomacy. In doing this, President Trump was not only bypassing the traditional media, but he was also bypassing other governmental bodies and the State’s bureaucracy. Hence, the digital revolution plays a crucial role in detecting the novelty of the effects that Donald Trump’s foreign policy had on fostering the perception of a possible decline of the international liberal order and the West as we have known it so far.

KEYWORDS: Donald Trump, Foreign Policy, Twitter Diplomacy, Populism, Theoretical Framework.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/101945

Abstract: Il forum degli Incel: la costruzione del consenso politico nella manosfera italiana

Davide Azzolari, Valeria Marina Borodi, Diego Garusi

THE FORUM OF THE INCEL: THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE POLITICAL CONSENSUS IN THE ITALIAN MANOSPHERE

Since the advent of Web 2.0 and social media, a particularly toxic brand of antifeminism has become evident in a wide range of online networks and platforms. Indeed, the digital environment allows a new relational modality that can promote more cosmopolitan attitudes, but at the same time is likely to encourage the creation of movements marked by a more exclusive sense of identity. An example of this is the manosphere, characterized as a composite and often contradictory set of different forms of masculinities which, despite multiple internal conflicts, is generally united by an adherence to the red pill philosophy, or to one of its many variants. Although the manosphere has attracted the attention of several scholars, literature on the subject has largely overlooked the political demands made by its constituent communities. Therefore, this work aims to investigate through which discursive strategies minority and ideologically connotation movements that inhabit the manosphere try to build a widespread consensus and legitimize their political demands. Specifically, this article is focused on one of the most active and well-known realities in the Italian manosphere, the «Forum degli Incel». With more than 1300 users, about 7000 discussions and almost 420.000 total visits, this forum, thanks to its public nature, allowed us to do a naturalistic netnographic analysis, to collect valid empirical material and provide an adequate response to our research questions. Our findings suggest that their political demands are promoted and justified through alleged scientific and philosophical discourses, conveyed within an echo chamber.

KEYWORDS: Political Consensus, Manosphere, Incel, Italy, Netnographic Analysis.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/101949

Abstract: The role of private and public educational providers in the digital post-Covid world

Mina Sotiriou, Michele Giovanardi

THE ROLE OF PRIVATE AND PUBLIC EDUCATIONAL PROVIDERS IN THE DIGITAL POST-COVID WORLD

The paper discusses and investigates the differences in the aims, purpose and roles of public Higher education institutions and private sector actors in digital education. Specifically, we discuss whether big tech multinationals play an invasive role in the educational arena that risks undermining the role of traditional public sector Higher education institutions and, therefore, whether we need digital education governance and what kind. The paper uses secondary data and critically evaluates opposing arguments in the literature to analyse and investigate theories and practices of educational offering in both the private and public sectors, arguing that: (1) there are differences between Higher education teaching & learning (public domain) and training and professional development (private domain) purposes; (2) tech companies like Microsoft and Alphabet (private) have a role to play in the knowledge-based economy especially in the post-Covid era; (3) this prompts the need for public funded Higher education institutions to work with industry to become more entrepreneurial and re-design their pedagogy by incorporating some of the best-practices in digital education; (4) we need independent instruments and institutions to safeguard our citizens and communities of learners; (5) and finally, argue that public investment in digital education should increase accordingly to enable universities to meet these new educational challenges. The paper does not position the analysis within a specific framework but rather presents a focus for discussion of current issues, located within a theoretical context. It is concluded that any «threat» publicly funded Higher education Institutions may face in the current commercialised educational world, is the result of outdated educational practices and a misconception of the roles and missions of public and private institutions in education. As such, we do not need stringent governance of digital education but a better digital education framework.

KEYWORDS: Higher education, EdTech, Covid, Private, Public.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/103802

Abstract: The Silver lining for learning webcasts as a bottom-up driver of global educational innovation

Chris Dede, Yong Zhao, Punya Mishra, Curtis J. Bonk

THE SILVER LINING FOR LEARNING WEBCASTS AS A BOTTOM-UP DRIVER OF GLOBAL EDUCATIONAL INNOVATION

Silver lining for learning (Sll: silverliningforlearning.org) is an unfunded, unsponsored, bottom-up initiative that emerged as a direct result of the pandemic. The authors are part of a team that co-founded this series of weekly webcasts (starting mid-March 2020), with close to 100 episodes as of March 2022. As the website describes, Sll «is an ongoing conversation on the future of learning» with innovative educators and education leaders from across the globe. The demands of 21st century work, citizenship, and life require a transformation of instruction to foster a very different set of knowledge, skills, and dispositions than those mandated by current national and regional educational governance systems focused on outdated educational goals and methods. This article describes representative Sll episodes and highlights the grassroots innovations that have been featured in them. The episodes on Sll have highlighted bottom-up models for transformative innovation that complement top-down initiatives for incremental educational improvement in industrial-era schooling. Regional, national, and global policies and reports have some value, but their recommendations lack detail about specific models for educational transformation in which participants experience ownership, cultural relevance, and contextual alignment. These bottom-up cases of innovation have been selected to illustrate educational transformation, particularly those involving digital forms of learning, design, and technology. Sections in this article on Student autonomy and Self-determination, Communities of learners, and Educational creativity and Innovation highlight a range of perspectives on innovation from the co-hosts. The creative tensions among these perspectives drive rich dialogues that help to make the show evocative for new models and methods. Sll demonstrates that, with almost no resources, locally led but globally motivated innovations can be recognized, celebrated, and shared across the world.

KEYWORDS: Innovation, Technological Change, Education, Policy.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/103803

Abstract: Agile governance for innovating higher education teaching and learning

Martin Wirsing, Dieter Frey

AGILE GOVERNANCE FOR INNOVATING HIGHER EDUCATION TEACHING AND LEARNING

In the field of study and teaching at universities today, digitisation is the cause and driving force for change and innovation. Online teaching, blended learning and new digital techniques for data structuring, simulation and interaction offer many opportunities for revising and renewing teaching and examination content, curricula and also communication between students and academics. In Germany, however, the Humboldtian principle of «freedom of teaching and research» applies. According to the German Basic Law and the Higher education acts of the German federal states, university lecturers are free «in their way to hold courses and to organise their content and methodology» and are therefore not obliged to develop their teaching techniques. To reform teaching, we propose agile processes that emphasise self-direction, collaboration, and lightweight procedures. In software development and business operations, such methods have proved to be successful in dealing with changing technologies and product requirements. In higher education, agile-based instructional methods are used but are not yet the method of choice. In this paper we present a novel agile governance approach for fostering innovation in university teaching and learning. The so-called «multiplier method» is also based on ethical principles and consists of two steps. Firstly, academics carry out innovative, self-selected teaching projects in small teams; they are coached by experts and also receive training on relevant topics such as teaching, inspiring, and leadership. Secondly, the participating academics act as multipliers: they pass on their experiences to their colleagues and become contact persons for good teaching in their faculties. The «multiplier method» was successfully tested in a large teaching innovation initiative. Over a period of 9 years, more than 150 individual innovation and online learning projects were successfully implemented.

KEYWORDS: Agile Governance, Software Development, Teaching and Learning, Higher Education, Multipliers.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/103804

Abstract: La digital education delle Forze armate italiane: modello attuale e prospettive future

Giuseppe Galetta

THE DIGITAL EDUCATION OF THE ITALIAN ARMED FORCES: CURRENT MODEL AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

In close co-operation with the University of Turin, Italian Armed forces (Afs) have been introducing e-learning as a training method for their personnel for some years, making extensive use of Moocs and developing progressively a specific digital education model, based on particular management characteristics, as well as on specialized personnel, able to respond to servicemen’s lifelong learning needs. Italian Afs have long been aware of the potential of digital education; in fact, after a starting up incubation period, they have embarked a gradual process of emancipation from the University model, in order to develop an autonomous framework. But how far has this process of emancipating the digital education of Italian Afs from the University model gone? If in an early stage Italian Afs leant on the University to get fully understood the dynamics and capacities of the e-learning and digital education in the Military field, by creating a hybrid training environment for their personnel, the competition between two public model of digital education, one civil (open), the other military (closed), as well as the particular training and strategic needs of the military sector, are imposing a separation of their respective governance systems of digital education, aiming to create an interforce training environment, in close collaboration with the Armed forces of the other Nato countries. This paper aims at outlining the possible developments of a new governance system of digital education, the Military one, tracing the evolution of the Italian Afs model, from the first stage of incubation into the University model, up to the progressive detachment from it.

KEYWORDS: Digital Education, E-learning, Italian Armed Forces, Military Education, Military Training.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/103805

Abstract: The paradox of «Low-Fi» digital public services

Gianluca Sgueo

THE PARADOX OF «LOW-FI» DIGITAL PUBLIC SERVICES

Electronics for general use – also known as «consumer tech» – are designed to provide instantgratification to their users, primarily via four design features: hyper-velocity (epitomised by shortened delivery time), over-simplicity (embodied by simplified user interfaces, accessible to anyone, regardless of their level of expertise), singularity (exemplified by digital services and products tailored to users’ needs and expectations) and (occasional) free-of-charge access to digital services. Consumer tech’s instant-gratification, however, comes at a cost: a lower average quality of its products and services when compared to their analogical – or professional – counterparts. As consumers, we may accept standardised low-fi technology, and adapt to the trade-off between rapid gratification and lower quality. This compromise, however, becomes unacceptable when we step into the shoes of citizens interacting with public administrations via online platforms or other digital means. Hence, the paradox of low-fi digital public services. Democratic decision-making is antithetical to consumer technology on four grounds. First and foremost, digital democratic spaces must necessarily stay inclusive. Consumer tech instead can be – and often is – exclusive. Second, public regulation is designed for durability, while consumer tech plans its obsolescence. Third, norms and rules are directed to large and undifferentiated communities (with rare exceptions of ad-hoc approaches). Fourth, digital public services differ from consumer tech in terms of reliability. Consumers may always opt out and adopt cheaper alternatives – citizens can’t. Higher complexity, extended duration and lower accessibility are passively accepted by many of us as regards the analogic, offline, public services. However, our acceptance quickly turns into frustration when we relate to, and engage with, digital public services. We expect our digital institutions to be easy to interact with, capable of responding both immediately and effectively to our demands, and possibly in a personalised fashion. In this article I propose to re-conceptualize the aesthetics of digitalised public services. I suggest ownplaying the idea that digital decision-making can only be effective when it delivers rapid and successful responses to the issues of the day, regardless of its complexity. I propose three actions to sustain highly performing digital government: first, elaborate a storytelling approach to digital government that shifts the focus from immediacy to complexity; second, frame digital public spaces with a focus on the interactions, not the outcomes; third, and finally, encourage civic engagement through creative approaches (through game-design elements, for instance).

KEYWORDS: Design, Digital, Government, Performance, Public Sector.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105065

Abstract: Rafforzare i processi decisionali nella Pubblica amministrazione: la percezione dei dipendenti pubblici del ruolo dei social media

Lucio Todisco, Paolo Canonico, Gianluigi Mangia, Andrea Tomo, Pasquale Sarnacchiaro

STRENGTHENING DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: CIVIL SERVANTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

In recent decades, digital transformation processes have enabled unprecedented dissemination and access to information in society, and previously unimaginable levels of participation and interaction by citizens. This sudden process of change, facilitated by new technologies, has also caused significant transformations in public organizations, impacting both processes and the relationship with citizens. Public administrations are increasingly relying on different types of social media, such as microblogs, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and other social platforms to improve relations between the public sector and citizens, ensure new forms of content sharing, and increase the participation and collaboration of citizens themselves. This rapid organizational change has also impacted how public employees work and perceive their administrations and has sparked new interest in whether, and how, digital platforms improve internal processes and facilitate the work of managers and public employees. This paper explores the effectiveness of implementing and using digital platforms in the public sector, with a specific focus on the role that social media can play in improving public decisionmaking processes and the quality of public services. We used a structured questionnaire to ask Italian public employees about the potential of, and critical issues around, social media use in the public sector. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The paper has two main objectives. From a theoretical point of view, this paper enriches the literature on the use of new technologies in the public sector, expanding the discussion regarding organizational changes generated by the ongoing digital transformation and decision-making processes in public administration. Secondly, the paper highlights the key aspects that influence the effectiveness and usefulness of social media in decision-making and the impact they have on public services offered to citizens, and thus provides valuable reflections on the managerial levers to be used for practical implementation in the public context.

KEYWORDS: Public Sector, Digital Platforms, Decision-Making, Processes, Digital Transformation.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105069

Abstract: Arizona dreamin’. L’innovazione digitale delle università

Valentina Reda

ARIZONA DREAMIN’. DIGITAL INNOVATION OF UNIVERSITIES

Higher education institutions are facing the challenge of redefining their educational mission in the new digitized environment, while competing with a plurality of private players who are exploiting their global penetration to erode the local university monopoly. This challenge directly concerns the awareness and responsiveness of university governance. The universities currently proposing new evolutionary models, which aim to balance sustainability and innovation, are still relatively few, and are ones that can count on more agile frameworks and more substantial resources, starting with the Anglo-American context, which has traced the main evolutionary stages of the hegemonic university model. For this reason, in this article we have chosen to start by illustrating the emblematic case – in terms of vision and international prominence – of Arizona State University, which has tried, over more than two decades, to achieve the transition from a multiversity model, campus-centered and with a weakly integrated governance, to the one imagined for the mega university, which is what characterizes the fifth wave of university development. With this, centralization of direction and strengthening of peripheral governance became functional in creating the conditions for the scalability of teaching and research activities. We then go on to review the more recent but no less disruptive developments at Coventry and Leeds universities in the Uk, selected on the basis of their standing and innovative potential. Our aim is to identify elements of convergence and key factors in their current development as useful references in the context of the ongoing process of university reform.

KEYWORDS: University, Governance, Innovation, Digitalization, Digital Learning.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105073

Abstract: The paradox of «Low-Fi» digital public services

Gianluca Sgueo

THE PARADOX OF «LOW-FI» DIGITAL PUBLIC SERVICES

Electronics for general use – also known as «consumer tech» – are designed to provide instantgratification to their users, primarily via four design features: hyper-velocity (epitomised by shortened delivery time), over-simplicity (embodied by simplified user interfaces, accessible to anyone, regardless of their level of expertise), singularity (exemplified by digital services and products tailored to users’ needs and expectations) and (occasional) free-of-charge access to digital services. Consumer tech’s instant-gratification, however, comes at a cost: a lower average quality of its products and services when compared to their analogical – or professional – counterparts. As consumers, we may accept standardised low-fi technology, and adapt to the trade-off between rapid gratification and lower quality. This compromise, however, becomes unacceptable when we step into the shoes of citizens interacting with public administrations via online platforms or other digital means. Hence, the paradox of low-fi digital public services. Democratic decision-making is antithetical to consumer technology on four grounds. First and foremost, digital democratic spaces must necessarily stay inclusive. Consumer tech instead can be – and often is – exclusive. Second, public regulation is designed for durability, while consumer tech plans its obsolescence. Third, norms and rules are directed to large and undifferentiated communities (with rare exceptions of ad-hoc approaches). Fourth, digital public services differ from consumer tech in terms of reliability. Consumers may always opt out and adopt cheaper alternatives – citizens can’t. Higher complexity, extended duration and lower accessibility are passively accepted by many of us as regards the analogic, offline, public services. However, our acceptance quickly turns into frustration when we relate to, and engage with, digital public services. We expect our digital institutions to be easy to interact with, capable of responding both immediately and effectively to our demands, and possibly in a personalised fashion. In this article I propose to re-conceptualize the aesthetics of digitalised public services. I suggest ownplaying the idea that digital decision-making can only be effective when it delivers rapid and successful responses to the issues of the day, regardless of its complexity. I propose three actions to sustain highly performing digital government: first, elaborate a storytelling approach to digital government that shifts the focus from immediacy to complexity; second, frame digital public spaces with a focus on the interactions, not the outcomes; third, and finally, encourage civic engagement through creative approaches (through game-design elements, for instance).

KEYWORDS: Design, Digital, Government, Performance, Public Sector.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105065

Abstract: Rafforzare i processi decisionali nella Pubblica amministrazione: la percezione dei dipendenti pubblici del ruolo dei social media

Lucio Todisco, Paolo Canonico, Gianluigi Mangia, Andrea Tomo, Pasquale Sarnacchiaro

STRENGTHENING DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: CIVIL SERVANTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

In recent decades, digital transformation processes have enabled unprecedented dissemination and access to information in society, and previously unimaginable levels of participation and interaction by citizens. This sudden process of change, facilitated by new technologies, has also caused significant transformations in public organizations, impacting both processes and the relationship with citizens. Public administrations are increasingly relying on different types of social media, such as microblogs, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and other social platforms to improve relations between the public sector and citizens, ensure new forms of content sharing, and increase the participation and collaboration of citizens themselves. This rapid organizational change has also impacted how public employees work and perceive their administrations and has sparked new interest in whether, and how, digital platforms improve internal processes and facilitate the work of managers and public employees. This paper explores the effectiveness of implementing and using digital platforms in the public sector, with a specific focus on the role that social media can play in improving public decisionmaking processes and the quality of public services. We used a structured questionnaire to ask Italian public employees about the potential of, and critical issues around, social media use in the public sector. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The paper has two main objectives. From a theoretical point of view, this paper enriches the literature on the use of new technologies in the public sector, expanding the discussion regarding organizational changes generated by the ongoing digital transformation and decision-making processes in public administration. Secondly, the paper highlights the key aspects that influence the effectiveness and usefulness of social media in decision-making and the impact they have on public services offered to citizens, and thus provides valuable reflections on the managerial levers to be used for practical implementation in the public context.

KEYWORDS: Public Sector, Digital Platforms, Decision-Making, Processes, Digital Transformation.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105069

Abstract: Arizona dreamin’. L’innovazione digitale delle università

Valentina Reda

ARIZONA DREAMIN’. DIGITAL INNOVATION OF UNIVERSITIES

Higher education institutions are facing the challenge of redefining their educational mission in the new digitized environment, while competing with a plurality of private players who are exploiting their global penetration to erode the local university monopoly. This challenge directly concerns the awareness and responsiveness of university governance. The universities currently proposing new evolutionary models, which aim to balance sustainability and innovation, are still relatively few, and are ones that can count on more agile frameworks and more substantial resources, starting with the Anglo-American context, which has traced the main evolutionary stages of the hegemonic university model. For this reason, in this article we have chosen to start by illustrating the emblematic case – in terms of vision and international prominence – of Arizona State University, which has tried, over more than two decades, to achieve the transition from a multiversity model, campus-centered and with a weakly integrated governance, to the one imagined for the mega university, which is what characterizes the fifth wave of university development. With this, centralization of direction and strengthening of peripheral governance became functional in creating the conditions for the scalability of teaching and research activities. We then go on to review the more recent but no less disruptive developments at Coventry and Leeds universities in the Uk, selected on the basis of their standing and innovative potential. Our aim is to identify elements of convergence and key factors in their current development as useful references in the context of the ongoing process of university reform.

KEYWORDS: University, Governance, Innovation, Digitalization, Digital Learning.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/105073

Abstract: ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo

ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

The election campaign for the 2022 Italian general elections was the most social ever. The determination to intercept the new voter – member of Z generation – made the political leaders of the main parties approach the social universe without actually fully knowing its operating rules. However, despite the fact that politicians have for months inhabited the same «places», used the same hashtags, and participated in the same challenges, the young and very young continue to perceive their language as distant from that typical of Z generation. This is confirmed by a survey conducted by Freeda on a sample of voters under-34: in 80% of cases, voters do not feel represented either by the content published through social media by political leaders or by the election programs proposed by parties. The decision on the part of Italian politics to be present on the main social media platforms constitutes the pursuit of a transformation that was already under way – and is, still today, in continuous evolution – towards the concept of «pop politics», whereby political discourse is no lonmger seen as being of a higher level, but rather uses the process of disintermediation as a solid basis from which to branch out into the dimension of intimate politics. The electoral race no longer develops within well-defined and precise temporal boundaries but becomes a «permanent campaign». Starting from these theoretical assumptions, the aim of this paper is to examine the main strategies introduced in the social sphere by Italian political leaders during the 2022 elections and intercept the effects they had on Z generation to understand how much they really affected the voting choices of post millennials. By reviewing the most popular trends and content published during the election campaign – with an eye always on televised political propaganda, which is the indispensable starting point for examining the new languages of contemporary politics – we will come to draw a broad and complete picture of the contemporary social-political universe

KEYWORDS: Pop-politics, Z Generation, Social Network, Berlusconism, TikTok

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107480

Abstract: A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

Laura Minguzzi

A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated major changes in contemporary society, particularly in regard to communication. Within the political sphere, leaders had to increasingly rely on social media to communicate with the electorate. In many countries, this transition, far from affecting only the period of pandemic emergency, has gone hand in hand with the contemporary populist wave. The paper aims to investigate how political communication of party leaders on social media has been influenced by «populist rhetoric», focusing on the pandemic influence on this shift. This was done by comparing the Facebook posts of populist and mainstream party leaders in three different Western European countries – Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain – and analyzing the language they used to interact with followers, starting from, with a comparison of periods before and after the pandemic. We identified four essential characteristics of populism Chameleon nature, Manichaean dialectic, Anti-elitism, and Charismatic leadership – which provide the theoretical basis for the content analysis carried out on the reference sample. These changes were observed in a period of rapid socio-cultural transformation. Indeed, the pandemic seems to have pushed the leaders of the parties analyzed toward a more populist vocabulary, even when they were not originally leaders of parties definable as such. This could be traced back to the inherent characteristics of social media, which rely more on the visual medium than on written text; prompting leaders to rely on more direct and impactful rhetoric to convey their message. However, «populist contagion» goes beyond the simple use of communication techniques, and the results of the analysis seem to confirm how populist rhetoric also affects the way leaders (and thus parties) choose to address certain policy and programmatic issues, moving them, in some cases, away from their traditional agendas

KEYWORDS: Populism, Political Communication, Social Media, Content Analysis, Personal Leadership

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107481

Abstract: IL MERCATO UNICO DIGITALE

Claudio Esposito Scalzo

EUROPEAN UNION DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET: BIGH TECH AND PUBLIC POLICIES

The global challenges of the 21st century push all modern countries to compete in multiple fields with different approaches, times, and methods. Particularly, digitization, articulated in all its forms, represents one of the most considerable and fascinating issues that the European union has to face. It is a journey that starts from afar and that has its roots in the desire to generate ever greater integration between the member countries, aimed at laying the foundations for shared public policies in the digital field. One of the crucial issue in recent years concerns the creation of the Digital single market (Dsm), i.e., that shared space in which one can benefit, from both an economic and social point of view, from digital developments and their consequent applications. Therefore, the purpose of this Web review is to explore the issue of European public policies about the Dsm and its implementation, providing a focus on the role of Big tech, the use of big data and possible regulatory developments. This analysis will be addressed through the study and discussion of two recent volumes on the subject (Manganelli and Nicita, 2022; Mãrcuţ, 2020). The texts prove to be fundamental for analyzing the major regulatory interventions in the sector, the interventions of the European commission and the main challenges to the creation of the Dsm. Furthermore, the article highlights the critical issues that Europe will be called upon to resolve, especially considering the economic and political strength of big tech, as well as the potential social impact. All in all, it is observed how the correct development of the Dsm can guarantee a dynamic, protected, and efficient economic and social system, fundamental conditions for responding to the challenges for the present and the future of the European union.

KEYWORDS: Digital Single Market, Digital Innovation, Digital Regulation, Big Tech, Governance

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107484

Abstract: ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo

ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

The election campaign for the 2022 Italian general elections was the most social ever. The determination to intercept the new voter – member of Z generation – made the political leaders of the main parties approach the social universe without actually fully knowing its operating rules. However, despite the fact that politicians have for months inhabited the same «places», used the same hashtags, and participated in the same challenges, the young and very young continue to perceive their language as distant from that typical of Z generation. This is confirmed by a survey conducted by Freeda on a sample of voters under-34: in 80% of cases, voters do not feel represented either by the content published through social media by political leaders or by the election programs proposed by parties. The decision on the part of Italian politics to be present on the main social media platforms constitutes the pursuit of a transformation that was already under way – and is, still today, in continuous evolution – towards the concept of «pop politics», whereby political discourse is no lonmger seen as being of a higher level, but rather uses the process of disintermediation as a solid basis from which to branch out into the dimension of intimate politics. The electoral race no longer develops within well-defined and precise temporal boundaries but becomes a «permanent campaign». Starting from these theoretical assumptions, the aim of this paper is to examine the main strategies introduced in the social sphere by Italian political leaders during the 2022 elections and intercept the effects they had on Z generation to understand how much they really affected the voting choices of post millennials. By reviewing the most popular trends and content published during the election campaign – with an eye always on televised political propaganda, which is the indispensable starting point for examining the new languages of contemporary politics – we will come to draw a broad and complete picture of the contemporary social-political universe

KEYWORDS: Pop-politics, Z Generation, Social Network, Berlusconism, TikTok

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107480

Abstract: A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

Laura Minguzzi

A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated major changes in contemporary society, particularly in regard to communication. Within the political sphere, leaders had to increasingly rely on social media to communicate with the electorate. In many countries, this transition, far from affecting only the period of pandemic emergency, has gone hand in hand with the contemporary populist wave. The paper aims to investigate how political communication of party leaders on social media has been influenced by «populist rhetoric», focusing on the pandemic influence on this shift. This was done by comparing the Facebook posts of populist and mainstream party leaders in three different Western European countries – Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain – and analyzing the language they used to interact with followers, starting from, with a comparison of periods before and after the pandemic. We identified four essential characteristics of populism Chameleon nature, Manichaean dialectic, Anti-elitism, and Charismatic leadership – which provide the theoretical basis for the content analysis carried out on the reference sample. These changes were observed in a period of rapid socio-cultural transformation. Indeed, the pandemic seems to have pushed the leaders of the parties analyzed toward a more populist vocabulary, even when they were not originally leaders of parties definable as such. This could be traced back to the inherent characteristics of social media, which rely more on the visual medium than on written text; prompting leaders to rely on more direct and impactful rhetoric to convey their message. However, «populist contagion» goes beyond the simple use of communication techniques, and the results of the analysis seem to confirm how populist rhetoric also affects the way leaders (and thus parties) choose to address certain policy and programmatic issues, moving them, in some cases, away from their traditional agendas

KEYWORDS: Populism, Political Communication, Social Media, Content Analysis, Personal Leadership

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107481

Abstract: IL MERCATO UNICO DIGITALE

Claudio Esposito Scalzo

EUROPEAN UNION DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET: BIGH TECH AND PUBLIC POLICIES

The global challenges of the 21st century push all modern countries to compete in multiple fields with different approaches, times, and methods. Particularly, digitization, articulated in all its forms, represents one of the most considerable and fascinating issues that the European union has to face. It is a journey that starts from afar and that has its roots in the desire to generate ever greater integration between the member countries, aimed at laying the foundations for shared public policies in the digital field. One of the crucial issue in recent years concerns the creation of the Digital single market (Dsm), i.e., that shared space in which one can benefit, from both an economic and social point of view, from digital developments and their consequent applications. Therefore, the purpose of this Web review is to explore the issue of European public policies about the Dsm and its implementation, providing a focus on the role of Big tech, the use of big data and possible regulatory developments. This analysis will be addressed through the study and discussion of two recent volumes on the subject (Manganelli and Nicita, 2022; Mãrcuţ, 2020). The texts prove to be fundamental for analyzing the major regulatory interventions in the sector, the interventions of the European commission and the main challenges to the creation of the Dsm. Furthermore, the article highlights the critical issues that Europe will be called upon to resolve, especially considering the economic and political strength of big tech, as well as the potential social impact. All in all, it is observed how the correct development of the Dsm can guarantee a dynamic, protected, and efficient economic and social system, fundamental conditions for responding to the challenges for the present and the future of the European union.

KEYWORDS: Digital Single Market, Digital Innovation, Digital Regulation, Big Tech, Governance

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107484

Abstract: ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

Alfonso Amendola, Martina Masullo

ELECTION AND SOCIAL NETWORK: THE EFFECT OF (ULTRA)POP POLITICS ON Z GENERATION

The election campaign for the 2022 Italian general elections was the most social ever. The determination to intercept the new voter – member of Z generation – made the political leaders of the main parties approach the social universe without actually fully knowing its operating rules. However, despite the fact that politicians have for months inhabited the same «places», used the same hashtags, and participated in the same challenges, the young and very young continue to perceive their language as distant from that typical of Z generation. This is confirmed by a survey conducted by Freeda on a sample of voters under-34: in 80% of cases, voters do not feel represented either by the content published through social media by political leaders or by the election programs proposed by parties. The decision on the part of Italian politics to be present on the main social media platforms constitutes the pursuit of a transformation that was already under way – and is, still today, in continuous evolution – towards the concept of «pop politics», whereby political discourse is no lonmger seen as being of a higher level, but rather uses the process of disintermediation as a solid basis from which to branch out into the dimension of intimate politics. The electoral race no longer develops within well-defined and precise temporal boundaries but becomes a «permanent campaign». Starting from these theoretical assumptions, the aim of this paper is to examine the main strategies introduced in the social sphere by Italian political leaders during the 2022 elections and intercept the effects they had on Z generation to understand how much they really affected the voting choices of post millennials. By reviewing the most popular trends and content published during the election campaign – with an eye always on televised political propaganda, which is the indispensable starting point for examining the new languages of contemporary politics – we will come to draw a broad and complete picture of the contemporary social-political universe

KEYWORDS: Pop-politics, Z Generation, Social Network, Berlusconism, TikTok

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107480

Abstract: A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

Laura Minguzzi

A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING POLITICAL COMMUNICATION: THE SPECTRE OF POPULISM ONLINE

The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated major changes in contemporary society, particularly in regard to communication. Within the political sphere, leaders had to increasingly rely on social media to communicate with the electorate. In many countries, this transition, far from affecting only the period of pandemic emergency, has gone hand in hand with the contemporary populist wave. The paper aims to investigate how political communication of party leaders on social media has been influenced by «populist rhetoric», focusing on the pandemic influence on this shift. This was done by comparing the Facebook posts of populist and mainstream party leaders in three different Western European countries – Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain – and analyzing the language they used to interact with followers, starting from, with a comparison of periods before and after the pandemic. We identified four essential characteristics of populism Chameleon nature, Manichaean dialectic, Anti-elitism, and Charismatic leadership – which provide the theoretical basis for the content analysis carried out on the reference sample. These changes were observed in a period of rapid socio-cultural transformation. Indeed, the pandemic seems to have pushed the leaders of the parties analyzed toward a more populist vocabulary, even when they were not originally leaders of parties definable as such. This could be traced back to the inherent characteristics of social media, which rely more on the visual medium than on written text; prompting leaders to rely on more direct and impactful rhetoric to convey their message. However, «populist contagion» goes beyond the simple use of communication techniques, and the results of the analysis seem to confirm how populist rhetoric also affects the way leaders (and thus parties) choose to address certain policy and programmatic issues, moving them, in some cases, away from their traditional agendas

KEYWORDS: Populism, Political Communication, Social Media, Content Analysis, Personal Leadership

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107481

Abstract: IL MERCATO UNICO DIGITALE

Claudio Esposito Scalzo

EUROPEAN UNION DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET: BIGH TECH AND PUBLIC POLICIES

The global challenges of the 21st century push all modern countries to compete in multiple fields with different approaches, times, and methods. Particularly, digitization, articulated in all its forms, represents one of the most considerable and fascinating issues that the European union has to face. It is a journey that starts from afar and that has its roots in the desire to generate ever greater integration between the member countries, aimed at laying the foundations for shared public policies in the digital field. One of the crucial issue in recent years concerns the creation of the Digital single market (Dsm), i.e., that shared space in which one can benefit, from both an economic and social point of view, from digital developments and their consequent applications. Therefore, the purpose of this Web review is to explore the issue of European public policies about the Dsm and its implementation, providing a focus on the role of Big tech, the use of big data and possible regulatory developments. This analysis will be addressed through the study and discussion of two recent volumes on the subject (Manganelli and Nicita, 2022; Mãrcuţ, 2020). The texts prove to be fundamental for analyzing the major regulatory interventions in the sector, the interventions of the European commission and the main challenges to the creation of the Dsm. Furthermore, the article highlights the critical issues that Europe will be called upon to resolve, especially considering the economic and political strength of big tech, as well as the potential social impact. All in all, it is observed how the correct development of the Dsm can guarantee a dynamic, protected, and efficient economic and social system, fundamental conditions for responding to the challenges for the present and the future of the European union.

KEYWORDS: Digital Single Market, Digital Innovation, Digital Regulation, Big Tech, Governance

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/107484

A SUBTLE HYPOCRISY

Michele Barbieri

A SUBTLE HYPOCRISY: INSIGHTS INTO THE ITALIAN POLITICS’ INERTIA ON THE COUNTER-DISINFORMATION POLICY

Disinformation has become a significant concern in the digital age, particularly with the proliferation of social networks. This phenomenon poses a threat to Western democracies, as it can manipulate public opinion, fuel political polarization, and facilitate the spread of fake news. The mechanisms provided by digital platforms have played a pivotal role in promoting the so-called «post-truth» era, enabling the dissemination of misleading narratives and the manipulation of public opinion. The Italian context began to prioritise the issue of disinformation after the notorious «Facebook-Cambridge Analytica» scandal. However, despite empirical evidence demonstrating the dangers of disinformation, the Italian political system has not adopted regulatory measures to address the issue. This essay aims to analyse the stance of the major Italian political parties and explore why the Italian political apparatus has not taken adequate action to ensure transparency, reliability, and trustworthiness within the digital media information ecosystem. To achieve this goal, a qualitative analysis of Italian political party leaders’ Facebook posts from 2018 to 2021 will be conducted, to identify how the issue of disinformation is framed and understood by political actors. By detecting convergences or divergences in the narratives and strategies employed, valuable insights into the parties’ approaches to disinformation can be gleaned. The findings of this study will shed light on the configuration of the issue within the Italian politics, providing explanations for the lack of regulatory tools and institutional responses to counter disinformation. Finally, understanding how the major political parties in Italy perceive and address disinformation is crucial for safeguarding the integrity of democratic processes and fostering public trust in the digital media information system.

KEYWORDS: Online Disinformation, Counter-Disinformation Policy, Disinformation Politics, Italian Case, Social Media.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/113722

SOCIAL SANCTIONS DURING DISASTERS

Camilla Volpe, Guido Anselmi, Vincenzo Laezza

SOCIAL SANCTIONS DURING DISASTERS. THE ITALIAN CASE OF CORONAVIRUS ON TWITTER

Natural disasters disrupt group stability but also bring out the potential in social capital, aiding in organizing collective responses, social norms and sanctions. In the digital environment, two forces can swiftly modify social norms: the digital propaganda discourse on the digital sphere and platform affordances. As social media has transformed Italian political propaganda, shaping a new form of communication distinct from the past, recognizing the role of affordances in the normative context is crucial. Twitter’s communicative arena operates based on these affordances, continually evolving and shaping new communication strategies. Politicians leverage these affordances to advance their goals, engaging with their audience uniquely. Observing changing social norms, especially during crises like Covid-19, is possible from the perspective of the technical communication system. This study explores collective resilience and social norms during Italy’s first Covid-19 wave, considering political and technical dimensions. Analysing two catalytic events through digital ethnography and content analysis of tweets, focusing on #Milanononsiferma and #Navigli, reveals distinct patterns in the first wave of the pandemic in Italy. In the first phase, conflicting opinions among experts and politicians made health issues challenging to identify. Social sanctioning targeted mask-wearing individuals. In the second phase, severity forced a convergence of natural and artificial factors, shifting sanctioning towards unmasked crowds. This evolution can be understood through socio-technical features: the extensive use of hashtags on Twitter may have amplified messages from political leaders and media, intensifying the a lowcost sanctioning and the adoption of norms that bolster social capital and a sense of belonging.

KEYWORDS: Covid-19, Social Sanctions, Disasters, Affordances, Political Communication.

LEGGI QUI: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.53227/113723