Face attack in Italian politics:Beppe Grillo’s insulting epithets for other politicians

The second largest party in the Italian Parliament, the “5-Star Movement” is led by comedian-turned-politician Beppe Grillo. Grillo is well-known for a distinctive and often inflammatory rhetoric, which includes the regular use of humorous but insulting epithets for other politicians, such as Psiconano (“Psychodwarf”) for Silvio Berlusconi. This paper discusses a selection of epithets used by Grillo on his blog between 2008 and 2015 to refer to Berlusconi and three successive centre-left leaders. We account for the functions of the epithets in terms of Spencer-Oatey’s (2002, 2008) multi-level model of “face” and of Culpeper’s (2011) “entertaining” and “coercive” functions of impoliteness. We suggest that our study has implications for existing models of face and impoliteness and for an understanding of the evolving role of verbal aggression in Italian politics

Getting together or breaking apart? Trade union strategies, restructuring and contingent workers in Southern Europe

The article considers the strategies of trade unions towards the representation of call centre workers. Using a comparative case study, it examines the divergent union responses to the growth of contingent labour by looking at the telecommunications industries in Italy and Greece. Although the trade unions in Italy pursued inclusive strategies embracing the call centre workers and negotiating the restructuring of the whole sector, the unions in Greece followed a policy of exclusion leaving call centre workers outside representation and negotiating their internal restructuring. The article argues that the different union identities, and the diverse power resources and internal organizational politics help explain the variation in the trade unions’ strategic responses

Divulgazione storica, letteratura e media sul tema LGBT+: quale contributo alla public history? (Dialoghi della Public History 4 ; 11 ottobre 2021)

Com’è stato per la storia delle donne, “l’ingresso” delle comunità Lgbtq+ nella narrazione storica e d’attualità ha comportato e sta comportando un faticoso cambio di prospettiva: nel linguaggio, nei contenuti, nell’impostazione e nella visione stessa in base alla quale affrontiamo e divulghiamo i temi di interesse della public history. Cercheremo prima di esplorare brevemente quanto l’inerzia (involontaria? Volontaria?) del linguaggio storiografico, su eventi e personaggi le cui vicende, il cui orientamento sessuale e la cui stessa identità costituiscono di per sé una sfida alla norma binaria del genere, condizioni la narrazione a livello mainstream e quindi renda più difficile un approccio scientifico e una divulgazione comprensibile. Cercheremo poi di indagare come i media abbiamo avviato una diversa narrazione e scelto un nuovo linguaggio e quali ostacoli continuino a incontrare. Infine tenteremo di capire come, proprio dai media, dai social e dalla moderna storiografia, possano arrivare nuovi strumenti e pratiche per una public history che non solo faccia suoi i temi connessi alle comunità Lgbtq+ ma renda effettivo, a livello di massa, un nuovo approccio all’interpretazione e alla memoria storica. Se esistano problemi nel “travaso” di queste esperienze. E, viceversa, quanto questo travaso possa aiutare in generale la crescita della public history fuori dal contesto Lgbtq+

Liberalisation, flexibility and industrial relations institutions: evidence from Italian and Greek banking

The article seeks to explain how institutions change within varieties of capitalism, focusing on an important institution for the world of work: wage bargaining. Although there is a widespread expectation that liberalization and firms’ needs for flexibility brings convergence to the liberal market model of decentralized industrial relations, recent literature suggests that diversity persists and that there are a range of different responses. This article contributes to the debate by applying a coalitional perspective to highlight the factors that influence divergent trajectories of change in wage bargaining. The case studies of Italian and Greek banking suggest that the existence of ‘employer associability’ may moderate decentralizing tendencies and facilitate the reform of industrial relations institutions, while ‘labour–state coalitions’ are critical for the survival of institutions. Finally, the article discusses the findings in relation to wider debates in the comparative political economy of work

Proximity and post-COVID-19 urban development: Reflections from Milan, Italy

This paper aims to describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the socio-economic structure of cities, and discuss the possible responses of a place-based agenda of urban policies built around the concept of ''proximity economy''. With this objective, the present work provides an interpretative framework for understanding the impact on urban economy with respect to Milan and Italy, by observing the emergence of the perspective of proximity in the debate to respond to the healthcare crisis due to the current pandemic. On this conceptual basis, the paper suggests measures and gives examples for implementing a proximity-based urban development agenda, concluding with a final framework of policy recommendations relating to the implementation of these policies

How did media present the radiation risks after the Fukushima accident: a content analysis of newspapers in Europe

Any activity that might result in exposure of a population to contaminants requires communication of the associated risks. This communication is complicated by several factors including public perceptions, distrust, uncertainties in risk assessment and news media. These factors are especially prominent in communication of risks from ionizing radiation. A number of guidelines about the communication of risks related to radiation exposures have been made by national and international authorities and other stakeholders. The present paper investigates whether those guidelines were followed and evaluates how the radiation risk related information was presented in European newspapers and Russia in the aftermath of the Fukushima accident. It examines the use of measurement units and risk comparisons, the quality of the statements on radiation risk related issues and the use of visual materials in 1340 newspaper articles from Belgium, Italy, Norway, Russia, Slovenia and Spain. Our results indicated several misinterpretations and misrepresentations of radiological risks in the newspaper articles. We also show an inconsistency in the information that was reported with advice provided to risk communicators (e.g. authorities and experts) in the guidelines. The results suggest that risk communicators should improve their communication practices regarding radiological risks, in order to improve emergency management response