The course is aimed at: - providing a coherent knowledge of the issues, concepts, and practices of political communication; - providing analytical tools on the actors of political communication (parties, social movements, active citizenship, non-formal associations); - providing a basic knowledge of the processes of transformation of the public sphere, also in relation to the development of digital capitalism; - providing the basic tools for studying the digital communication ecosystem and its relations with democracy; - providing good knowledge of the forms of online political communication and media activism; - providing basic methods for political communication practices. Attendance at the lectures is compulsory. In view of the seminar nature of the course, it is also strongly recommended. The course will be organised in an "enquiry-based" perspective.

Dublin descriptors Students should achieve: A) Knowledge and ability to understand: the forms and processes of political communication, through the acquisition of theoretical competencies on the theories and models of the discipline, also in relation to the critical approaches of media studies. A) Knowledge and understanding: of the forms and processes of political communication, through the acquisition of theoretical skills on the theories and models of the discipline, also in relation to the critical approaches of media studies. Students acquire this basic knowledge by attending lectures and studying the texts provided by the lecturer and discussed in the classroom (online and on-campus). B) Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: through the ability to analyse the relationships between political campaigning practices and models of analysis of the public sphere, applying the main methodologies of analysis from media studies. Skills acquired through laboratory exercises in class (on-campus or online). C) Judgment: critical reflection on the evolutionary dynamics of the relationship between social and political participation and transformations of the public sphere, also in the light of the development of digital capitalism and neo-liberalism. This judgment will have to be applied in the classroom with the teacher and the colleagues, during the exercises, and in the preparation of the classroom activities. D) Communication skills: students are called upon to interact in the classroom by means of questions, exchanges with fellow students, writing short presentations, and illustrating the proposed texts. This skill is practiced in the classroom (online and on-campus) by organising discussion and practice sessions. E) Learning ability: students are asked to adopt a critical learning method capable of connecting theoretical competencies and empirical analysis, aiming at the specification of autonomous thought, also thanks to the adoption of a "collaborative learning" perspective. Skills to be enhanced through argumentation with the teacher and fellow students

The course is organized according the following topics: 1A) Definitions and concepts 1B) Techniques and theories of electoral campaigning 2A) The four phases of political communication 2B) Media use and campaigning 3A) Models of political communication and the crisis paradigm 3B) Framing and storytelling techniques and electoral strategies 4A) Digital ecosystems and political communication 4B) Disintermediation and re-intermediation 5A) The transformation of the public sphere 5B) Public opinion and postmodern societies 6A) Political polarisation, social fragmentation, and celebrity politics 6B) Italy as a republic of media 7A) Social media, news engagement, and populism 7B) Soft power and the new cultural (and "subcultural") hegemonies 8A) Political mobilisation: social movements and civicness 8B) Political mobilisation: case studies 9A) Conflict, inequalities, communication 9B) Case studies

Due to the seminar nature of the course, references will be made to the texts in an "analytical and critical" manner. - Gili G. e Panarari, M. (2020). La credibilità politica. Venezia: Marsilio. - Sorice, M. (2011). La comunicazione politica. Roma: Carocci - Articles distributed in Luiss Learn platform Other (optional) texts will be available on Perlego platform

The course includes lectures with the use of multimedia presentations and classroom seminar activities, as well as online activities through the Moodle platform We will also use other platforms for collaborative learning. The course is based on: - role-playing, simulation, and classroom presentations Bibliographical indications will be provided for the study of specific topics

Please note that the course is seminar-based and the examination will take place through a series of tests and classroom activities throughout the semester. There will therefore be no intermediate assessment test. In particular, the assessment will be based on: 1) Attendance and active participation in the course: 20%. 2) Activities, exercises, and group presentations: 50%. 3) Final written test (open-ended questionnaire): 30%. ____ Non-attending students. Please note that in our University, attendance is compulsory. However, in special, justified cases, it will be possible to sit the exam as a "non-attending students". The examination for non-attending students consists of: 1) an essay (4000-5000 words, excluding bibliography) to be delivered at least one week before the exam, on a topic to be agreed with the teacher (and in any case in the study areas of the course). The essay must follow the Harvard or APA citation rules, as also indicated in the Learn platform; 2) the written test (open-ended questionnaire on the examination texts)

Topics Topics should be proposed to and discussed with the teachers. The thesis work will be supervised by the teacher(s) Requirements Priority requirements - interest in research on political communication, empirical studies on political mobilisation, analysis of the relations between media and intermediate bodies (parties, trade unions, movements), studies on populism, research on the digital ecosystem - ability to master texts in English (preferably also in French) - the basic ability to use the main methods of social research (communication and political research) - adequate knowledge of the fundamentals of sociology, sociology of communication, and political science To obtain the thesis you must submit a written project including research methodology, accompanied by a (provisional) table of contents and a minimum basic bibliography. The citation system to be compulsorily adopted is one to be chosen from the HARVARD SYSTEM or the APA Style: a concise guide to these systems is available in Luiss Learn platform (Political Communication page)