A New Direction in University. Teaching between Solidarity, Complexity and Media Education

At the time of an abundance of media o ers and the reduced prestige of the institutions, teaching became strategic to maintaining and rede ning the authority and professional recognition of teachers. It has therefore become advisable to activate a process of self-re ection on the part of universities on the dimensions of didactic innovation and new demands placed on university professors, starting from the reformulation of the mission of the University of the ird Millennium. Areas in need of consideration include: educating to educate (old and new trends in the mode of transmission of knowledge, considering the continuous access to the contents and the new media and cultural behaviours of the students); educating towards an interdisciplinary perspective; educating towards internationalization; educating for integration and solidarity; educating to divulge the results of scienti c research, national and global problems and evolutions in terms of technology and human value; educating with and about the digital media. All these dimensions are explored in the paper, with particular a ention given to the multiple dimensions of Media Literacy for university teachers with regard to overcoming physical, cultural and generational barriers between teachers and students and to up-to-date and democratize the quality university education

Prove tecniche di comunicazione. L’efficienza energetica come strategia di futuro

Lo sviluppo civile e sociale dell’umanità è stato da sempre connesso alle possibilità e ai modi con cui la risorsa energetica è stata utilizzata. Basterebbe questa considerazione a giustificare l’interesse che il tema riveste per le scienze sociali. Questo vuol dire che si sbaglierebbe a considerare l’energia come un dominio in cui si confrontano esclusivamente istanze economiche, saperi tecnici e decisioni amministrative

Radioteatro en Italia. Narrativa entre la radiodifusión pública y los nuevos espacios digitales

This paper analyzes Italian radio theatre evolution and its ability to put itself always in the middle between radio and other expressive media: theater, cinema, comics, daily news, books and Internet. Starting from the analysis of the main evolutionary phases of this complex radio genre, this contribution illustrates the complexity of radio theater as one of the treasures brought to light by media archeology, which lends itself almost naturally to disciplinary and media crossings. In this expressive format, belonging to media proto history, lurks a deeply complex nature and fervent creativity, which rediscovers in the ether an amplifier of the digital, a new space of expressiveness and diversification of its audience.Este artículo analiza la evolución del radioteatro italiano y su habilidad para posicionarse siempre entre la radio y otros formatos expresivos: teatro, cine, cómics, noticias de actualidad, libros e Internet. Partiendo del análisis de las principales fases de este complejo género radiofónico, esta aportación ilustra la complejidad del radioteatro como uno de los tesoros que salen a la luz a través de la arqueología de los medios, que contribuye de forma natural al cruce entre disciplinas y medios. En esta forma expresiva, que se atribuye a la protohistoria de los medios de comunicación, se encuentra una profunda, compleja y ferviente creatividad, que redescubre en el espectro un amplificador de lo digital, un nuevo espacio de expresividad y una diversificación de su público

Another university is possible: towards an idea of Meridian University

Worldwide university politics take for granted the primacy of Global- Northern paradigm. In the last decades, Higher Education policies have been shaped by global devices of neoliberal governance, such as the Competitiveness Global Index elaborated by the World Economic Forum. We examine the ever encroaching HE evaluation policies and illustrate how, in the framework of the current “Evaluative State”, university has been rebuilt according to the priorities of the “neoliberal market agenda”. What is at stake is a “new spirit of evaluation” that mirrors the current “new spirit of capitalism”. Opposite to the neutral and disembodied models of “ideal-academic”, which treat knowledge as a Northern, white, gendered, middle class monopoly, we argue that “academic quality” displays embedded/embodied features devoid of universalistic issues. Taking inspiration from Raewyn Connell (2019), we propose “another possible university”, appointed with less strict epistemic instances, to rethink Higher Education in terms of some fresh “breaking” ideas: “Meridian thought” (Cassano, 1996), “slowness” (Berg & Seeber, 2016), “multi-versity” (Braidotti, 2013), “subversity” (De Sousa Santos, 2018), “decolonization” (Mbembe, 2016), “deparochialization of research” (Appadurai, 2013)

Migraciones, Italia y Europa entre datos de investigación y narrativas mediáticas

Estamos afrontando una nueva fase de procesos de migración, en equilibrio entre los profundos cambios geopolíticos, económicos y socioculturales y la falta de preparación de los medios y de las políticas occidentales para abordar esta complejidad. Por esta razón, los fenómenos migratorios requieren una atención particular y la capacidad de comprender el lado humano, cultural e incluso económico, pero sin erosionar dimensiones como la confianza, la cohesión y la solidaridad, que deberían ser una guía para la vida social a escala nacional e internacional. En este proceso, la comunicación y los medios desempeñan un papel importante. Para validar esto, se decidió analizar las narrativas de los medios sobre la migración y, en particular, las que fueran difundidas a través de las principales redes mayoritarias de Italia, documentando el fenómeno con datos proporcionados por fuentes secundarias como la Carta di Roma y el Osservatorio di Pavia, y a través de un análisis comparativo de los estilos narrativos de dos programas de televisión transmitidos en las principales redes nacionales: Dalla vostra parte / De vuestra parte (Rete 4) y Radici. L'altra faccia dell'immigrazione / Raíces. La otra cara de la inmigración (Rai 3).We are facing a new phase of migration processes caught between profound geopolitical, economic and sociocultural changes and the lack of preparation of Western media and policy in addressing this complexity. For this reason, migratory phenomena call for particular attention and the ability to grasp the human, cultural and even economic side without eroding dimensions such as trust, cohesion and solidarity that should guide social life at the national and international level. In this process, communication and media play an important role. To validate this, we analyzed media narratives on migration; particularly those disseminated through the major mainstream networks, and documented the phenomenon with data provided by secondary sources such as the Carta di Roma and the Osservatorio di Pavia. A comparative analysis was also carried out of the narrative styles of two TV shows aired on the national mainstream networks: "Dalla vostra parte/ On Your Side" (Rete 4) and "Radici. L'altra faccia dell'immigrazione/ Roots. The other face of immigration" (Rai 3).Estem afrontant una nova fase de processos de migració, en equilibri entre els profunds canvis geopolítics, econòmics i socioculturals i la manca de preparació dels mitjans i de les polítiques occidentals per abordar aquesta complexitat. Per aquesta raó, els fenòmens migratoris requereixen una atenció particular i la capacitat d'entendre el costat humà, cultural i fins i tot econòmic, però sense erosionar dimensions com la confiança, la cohesió i la solidaritat, que haurien de ser una guia per a la vida social a escala nacional i internacional. En aquest procés, la comunicació i els mitjans hi tenen un paper important. Per validar això, es va decidir analitzar les narratives dels mitjans sobre la migració i, en particular, les que fossin difoses a través de les principals xarxes majoritàries d'Itàlia, documentant el fenomen amb dades proporcionades per fonts secundàries com la Carta di Roma i l'Osservatorio di Pavia, i a través d'una anàlisi comparativa dels estils narratius de dos programes de televisió transmesos en les principals xarxes nacionals: Dalla vostra parte / De la vostra part (Rete 4) y Radici. L'altra faccia dell'immigrazione / Arrels. L'altra cara de la immigració (Rai 3)

The new socialization: TV screen and touch technologies. Communicative behaviors of children 3-6 years old between ethical and methodological issues and educational strategies

Este articulo afronta algunas cuestiones claves respecto al grupo de edad menos explorado por la literatura científica, en el ámbito de la sociología y la de comunicación: los niños en edad preescolar (3-6 años). La reflexión se inicia en las abundantes sugerencias que surgen de una investigación aún en desarrollo, que se realiza en el Departamento de Comunicación e Investigación Social de la Universidad de Roma de La Sapienza, en colaboración con otras universidades y empresas italianas. En particular, este articulo tiene por objeto ofrecer unos escenarios del espacio comunicativo de los niños en edad preescolar y de sus consecuencias en términos de socialización y desarrollo cognitivo. Entre las tecnologías de comunicación, se han elegido las consideradas de mayor impacto en el estilo de vida de las familias. Por tanto, dichas tecnologías comprenden desde la televisión, hasta los nuevos dispositivos con pantallas táctiles (touch screen) como smartphones y tablets. Pero los problemas que se plantean en el camino que va desde la escuela en primer lugar a la experimentación de interfaces y ambientes digitales que hay que integrar en los contextos educativos, no son pocos. Es necesario tener en cuenta muchas cuestiones metodológicas, y sobre todo complejas cuestiones éticas en un universo tan sensible como el de los niños.The contribution deals with some key issues related to the age group that is least explored in sociological and communicative scientific literature, the pre-school children (3-6 years). The consideration starts from some stimulation provided by an ongoing research conducted at the Department of Communication and Social Research of “Sapienza”- University of Rome, in collaboration with other universities and Italian enterprises. In particular, the article aims to provide some scenarios related to communicative behaviours of preschool children and the repercussions in terms of socialization and cognitive development. Among the technologies of communication, we selected the ones we consider have the greatest impact on the lifestyle of families and, therefore, also of children: from television, up to the new devices based on touch screens such as smartphones and tablets. But the problems that arise before testing the interfaces and the digital environments to be integrated within the educational context, the school in primis, are many: it should be considered many issues related to methodology, but also the delicate ethical issues posed by a sensitive world such as that one of the early childhood

Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222) against SARS-CoV-2: an interim analysis of four randomised controlled trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the UK.

BACKGROUND: A safe and efficacious vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), if deployed with high coverage, could contribute to the control of the COVID-19 pandemic. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine in a pooled interim analysis of four trials. METHODS: This analysis includes data from four ongoing blinded, randomised, controlled trials done across the UK, Brazil, and South Africa. Participants aged 18 years and older were randomly assigned (1:1) to ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine or control (meningococcal group A, C, W, and Y conjugate vaccine or saline). Participants in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group received two doses containing 5 × 1010 viral particles (standard dose; SD/SD cohort); a subset in the UK trial received a half dose as their first dose (low dose) and a standard dose as their second dose (LD/SD cohort). The primary efficacy analysis included symptomatic COVID-19 in seronegative participants with a nucleic acid amplification test-positive swab more than 14 days after a second dose of vaccine. Participants were analysed according to treatment received, with data cutoff on Nov 4, 2020. Vaccine efficacy was calculated as 1 - relative risk derived from a robust Poisson regression model adjusted for age. Studies are registered at ISRCTN89951424 and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04324606, NCT04400838, and NCT04444674. FINDINGS: Between April 23 and Nov 4, 2020, 23 848 participants were enrolled and 11 636 participants (7548 in the UK, 4088 in Brazil) were included in the interim primary efficacy analysis. In participants who received two standard doses, vaccine efficacy was 62·1% (95% CI 41·0-75·7; 27 [0·6%] of 4440 in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group vs71 [1·6%] of 4455 in the control group) and in participants who received a low dose followed by a standard dose, efficacy was 90·0% (67·4-97·0; three [0·2%] of 1367 vs 30 [2·2%] of 1374; pinteraction=0·010). Overall vaccine efficacy across both groups was 70·4% (95·8% CI 54·8-80·6; 30 [0·5%] of 5807 vs 101 [1·7%] of 5829). From 21 days after the first dose, there were ten cases hospitalised for COVID-19, all in the control arm; two were classified as severe COVID-19, including one death. There were 74 341 person-months of safety follow-up (median 3·4 months, IQR 1·3-4·8): 175 severe adverse events occurred in 168 participants, 84 events in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group and 91 in the control group. Three events were classified as possibly related to a vaccine: one in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group, one in the control group, and one in a participant who remains masked to group allocation. INTERPRETATION: ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 has an acceptable safety profile and has been found to be efficacious against symptomatic COVID-19 in this interim analysis of ongoing clinical trials. FUNDING: UK Research and Innovation, National Institutes for Health Research (NIHR), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Lemann Foundation, Rede D'Or, Brava and Telles Foundation, NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Thames Valley and South Midland's NIHR Clinical Research Network, and AstraZeneca

Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222) against SARS-CoV-2: an interim analysis of four randomised controlled trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the UK

Background A safe and efficacious vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), if deployed with high coverage, could contribute to the control of the COVID-19 pandemic. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine in a pooled interim analysis of four trials. Methods This analysis includes data from four ongoing blinded, randomised, controlled trials done across the UK, Brazil, and South Africa. Participants aged 18 years and older were randomly assigned (1:1) to ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine or control (meningococcal group A, C, W, and Y conjugate vaccine or saline). Participants in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group received two doses containing 5 × 1010 viral particles (standard dose; SD/SD cohort); a subset in the UK trial received a half dose as their first dose (low dose) and a standard dose as their second dose (LD/SD cohort). The primary efficacy analysis included symptomatic COVID-19 in seronegative participants with a nucleic acid amplification test-positive swab more than 14 days after a second dose of vaccine. Participants were analysed according to treatment received, with data cutoff on Nov 4, 2020. Vaccine efficacy was calculated as 1 - relative risk derived from a robust Poisson regression model adjusted for age. Studies are registered at ISRCTN89951424 and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04324606, NCT04400838, and NCT04444674. Findings Between April 23 and Nov 4, 2020, 23 848 participants were enrolled and 11 636 participants (7548 in the UK, 4088 in Brazil) were included in the interim primary efficacy analysis. In participants who received two standard doses, vaccine efficacy was 62·1% (95% CI 41·0–75·7; 27 [0·6%] of 4440 in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group vs71 [1·6%] of 4455 in the control group) and in participants who received a low dose followed by a standard dose, efficacy was 90·0% (67·4–97·0; three [0·2%] of 1367 vs 30 [2·2%] of 1374; pinteraction=0·010). Overall vaccine efficacy across both groups was 70·4% (95·8% CI 54·8–80·6; 30 [0·5%] of 5807 vs 101 [1·7%] of 5829). From 21 days after the first dose, there were ten cases hospitalised for COVID-19, all in the control arm; two were classified as severe COVID-19, including one death. There were 74 341 person-months of safety follow-up (median 3·4 months, IQR 1·3–4·8): 175 severe adverse events occurred in 168 participants, 84 events in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group and 91 in the control group. Three events were classified as possibly related to a vaccine: one in the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 group, one in the control group, and one in a participant who remains masked to group allocation. Interpretation ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 has an acceptable safety profile and has been found to be efficacious against symptomatic COVID-19 in this interim analysis of ongoing clinical trials

Il Cinema dà Sapienza. YouTrailer - Il rinascimento digitale del cinema italiano

L’intensa fruizione di film e contenuti audiovisivi amplificata nella quantità e rivoluzionata nelle modalità durante la pandemia da Covid-19, impone una riflessione sul rapporto tra giovani e cinema. Il testo chiama in causa la capacità di un sistema audiovisivo sempre più “glocalizzato” di promuovere e valorizzare le aspettative, le competenze e il talento delle nuove generazioni. A fare da sfondo per il volume è stata l’esperienza del Progetto “YouTrailer. Il Rinascimento digitale del cinema italiano” della Sapienza (Osservatorio Cinemonitor) in collaborazione con la Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, nell’ambito del Piano Nazionale MIUR- MiBACT (MIC) “Cinema per la Scuola”. Attraverso la creazione di trailer per i vecchi film, che non hanno mai usufruito di un tale strumento di promozione, e con l’utilizzo di linguaggi affini a un pubblico di adolescenti, il passato è diventato presente e i tempi sociali e tecnologici si sono amalgamati come mai in un percorso di continuità. Questa linea del tempo sollecita un ulteriore sforzo: lanciare un’ancora verso il futuro e tracciare in maniera propositiva il profilo delle politiche pubbliche in grado di rafforzare il rapporto tra le platee giovanili e l’universo cinematografico. Dopo una prima parte dedicata alle prospettive accademiche, la seconda sezione del volume apre alle testimonianze professionali, integrate da proposte di politiche pubbliche per la valorizzazione del cinema e dell’audiovisivo contemporaneo quale spazio simbolico, rifugio e potenziamento delle grandi risorse della mente, della creatività, della fiducia. Si tratta di una mappa riassuntiva delle trasformazioni che coinvolgono il mondo del cinema, che serve per immaginare strategie e creare ponti comunicativi con l’universo giovanile, nel rispetto dei nuovi comportamenti di fruizione e delle aspettative delle nuove generazioni nei confronti delle produzioni italiane di ieri e di oggi. Infine, le testimonianze d’eccellenza di studiose e studiosi, di rappresentanti della vita culturale e mediale del Paese hanno regalato a questo libro la saggezza di chi dell’impegno culturale, della democratizzazione dell’accesso e del rapporto con le nuove generazioni ha fatto ragione di civiltà e mission di vita. Ringraziamo, dunque, Maria Pia Ammirati – direttrice Rai Fiction; Alfonso Benevento – direttore responsabile del periodico etutorweb.it; Marco Chiani – giornalista e critico cinematografico; Roberto Cicutto – presidente della Fondazione “La Biennale di Venezia”; Cristiana Collu – direttrice della Galleria Nazionale D’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea; Ida Cortoni – docente Sapienza Università di Roma; Paolo Del Brocco – amministratore Delegato Rai Cinema; Valentina Faloni – studiosa di storytelling; Giovambattista Fatelli – docente Sapienza Università di Roma; Sara Manini-Lardani – trailermaker; Edoardo Massieri – trailermaker; Laura Minestroni – docente Sapienza Università di Roma; Guido Nicolosi – docente Università di Catania; Giannandrea Pecorelli – produttore cinematografico e televisivo; Andrea Pranovi – esperto comunicazione radiofonica; Camilla Rumi – docente e studiosa di Media Education; Mario Rusconi – presidente ANP Lazio; Francesco Rutelli – presidente ANICA

Television in the Time of Complexity. Between Crisis and Renaissance

Some people talk about the impendant “death” of television; others foresee a longer existence, even in altered cultural and technological landscapes. Nonetheless, the recurring word which nowadays rules over national and international discussion is, undoubtedly, crisis. This work aims to confront the television issue by getting a sense of the complexity of the fact and assuming both a historical outlook and an extensive eye on current markets. It is, indeed, well known that etymologically crisis means “the time to choose”, “to reach a decision”. This choice mainly regards the need to redefine the communication deal between italians and audiovisual language. What are the analythical features, both lexical and technological, from which is possible to start over new and revive a television good not only for celebrating the present time but also able to enact cultural and symbolic essences of change to come? Can this moment of stasis, that is seen by some opinion leaders as a time of cultural regression, become the chance for a different placement of the media, now able to fit with the deep changes that take up the technological, social and cultural background, in which we are living today? Then, is it possible that the complexity of current tv market will become an opportunity to rethink a new pattern for a television of the crisis? Destabilized by modern times crisis and the internet typhoon, traditional cultural industries require to be re-placed. This sort of redefinition cannot except such a fundamental field, like television is. If the new television was reinterpreted according to modern times’ needs, it could become part of the strategy to overcome social, cultural and even economical crisis