Towards a Humanistic Conception of Cyberspace. A Twofold Challenge for Netizens Mobilizing for a Democratic Internet Governance

Our paper critically addresses the involvement and the role of civil society entities in new participatory forms of governance, using the Internet governance (IG) debate as a case study. The Internet is first and foremost a global public space potentially available to everyone for the pursuit of the most heterogeneous interests. As this global space becomes crucial in everyday life and consequences of interests pursuit within it capillary innerve the offline dimension, new forms of governance are required to ensure that all stakeholders are represented and actively involved in the management and development of what can be conceptualized as a common pool resource (CPR). The commons of the Internet space and its service as a CPR necessitate the involvement of various competencies that are dispersed in intelligence networks to which private sector and civil society necessary belong. In particular, we examine the meaning and the potential for the inclusion of civil society entities in this debate in relation to the achievement of a universal (and not only global) Internet and the consolidation of a humanized conception of IG. To this end, we propose an analytical division of IG space in four sub-sectors (social commons; information and service commons; price commons; infrastructure commons) and we argue that civil society groups participation should be contextualized and actions modulated following this dissection of competence and eligibility spheres. Furthermore, the effort to achieve a democratic internet governance translates into a double challenge for civil society groups: on the one hand, occasions of direct influence must be fully exploited modulating actions in a way that overcomes the inherent heterogeneity characterizing public interests entities; on the other, a humanized vision has to be built up and consolidated in the IG field in order to provide a set of benchmarks dynamically interacting with market and traditional policy making logics. Finally, we will also explore the effect that the construction and the consolidation of a humanized perspective on IG will have in the translation of this domain from a mostly technical matter into a seed in an emerging field of contention built around information and communication issues.internet governance, common pool resource, civil society political participation, humanized conception of internet governance

Structuring online and offline discursive spaces on Internet governance. Insights from a network approach to map an emergent field.

Internet governance (IG) is quickly emerging both as a field of political practices at global level andas an object of interdisciplinary research. In this paper, we start proposing to conceive current processes of debate over Internet governance as a progressive consolidation of a field as a recognized area of institutional life (Di Maggio & Powell 1983) within which practices of interaction between a plurality of actors, all perceiving to be legitimate claimants in the discussion, are being institutionalized. We propose that a fruitful way to explore current dynamics within the IG field is to focus on relations actors establish one another in this social dialogue, thus structuring collaborative environments that, if analyzed systematically, can shed some new light on the very meaning of multi-actor

Striking, Marching, Tweeting. Studying How Online Networks Change Together with Movements

This article aims to achieve a better understanding of how online networks contribute to the organization and the symbolic production of social movements using big data coming from social media platforms. It traces and compares online social and semantic networks that emerged on Twitter during two protest events organized by the feminist Italian movement Non Una Di Meno (NUDM) – a national strike organized on March 8th, 2017 and a march organized on November 25th of the same year. Our results suggests that, over time, online networks created on Twitter remain sparse and centralized around the movement handle but that they continue to host an interactive dialogue between the movement, its activists, and supporters. Also, over time, participants to online conversations around NUDM tend to use Twitter to discuss different aspects of the mobilization – paying more attention to the spaces of the pro-test during the strike and to the issue of gender-based violence in November

“BATTLES OVER ISSUES” IN NETWORKED PUBLICS: INVESTIGATING THE DISCURSIVE MOBILIZATION OF THE ANTIFASCIST FRAME ON TWITTER

In this article we explore the discursive mobilization of movement frames within networked publics—a form of unorganized digital activism through which movement organizations, activists, and citizens politicize ordinary conversations by engaging in adversarial meaningmaking dynamics online. Leaning on large-scale semantic network analysis and content analysis, we investigate the mobilization of the frame of antifascism within the conversation that sparked on Twitter after the brutal shooting of a group of African citizens by an Italian neofascist militant in 2018. We pay particular attention to how the discursive mobilization of the frame of antifascism occurs immediately after the shooting and how it evolves particularly in connection with offline protests. Our results shed light on the fluid nature of discursive mobilization patterns which underpin both the identification with the antifascist tradition and attempts to delegitimize this instance of collective action

Varieties of antigenderism: the politicization of gender issues across three European populist radical right parties

This research contributes to the study of populist radical right parties’ (PRRPs) role in gendered democratic backsliding by analyzing their articulation and symbolic representation of gender issues. We compare the politicization of gender issues across three European PRRPs, examining how context-specific gendered opportunity structures – the level of contestation of gender issues in their country, the resonance of antigenderism among their electorate, and their issue repertoire and historical trajectory – shape the extent and ways in which the German AfD, the Italian Lega and the Sweden Democrats politicize gender issues. We conduct a quantitative content analysis of PRRPs’ framing of gender issues and construct topic networks based on the parties’ Facebook and Twitter posts during the European Parliament election campaign 2019. We analyze the salience of gender issues, the broader topical context in which they are embedded, the specific gender issues addressed, and the parties’ positions on these issues. Our results show how context-specific gendered opportunities shape PRRPs’ national gender discourses: A low level of contestation, evidenced by a high public recognition and legal protection of gender and sexual equality, seems to foster a femonationalist framing, while antigenderist discourse is less pronounced in such a context. Instead, a higher level of contestation, expressed in a lower public recognition and legal protection of gender and sexual equality, seems to foster antigenderist discourse. A transnational femonationalist framing, shared by all analyzed parties, relates to a common nativist ideological core

Le passioni della politica. Hannah Arendt: lettrice ed interprete di Montesquieu

In questo lavoro ho cercato di mettere in relazione due importanti pensatori politici, appartenenti a due epoche diverse: Montesquieu e Hannah Arendt. Il mio obiettivo principale è stato quello di ritrovare nel pensiero della Arendt le influenze del pensatore francese e di sottolineare gli elementi di novità e discontinuità che sono emersi nell'analisi delle due forme politiche su cui hanno riflettuto maggiormente i due autori, ovvero il regime dispotico per quanto riguarda Montesquieu e il regime totalitario nel caso della Arendt

Digital school and 2.0 classes: effects of reading medium on text processing and comprehension in students of lower secondary school

openIl presente lavoro ha esaminato la comprensione del testo in relazione al mezzo di lettura, su carta e su dispositivo digitale, e all’utilizzo di una strategia di studio come l’evidenziazione. Lo studio è stato condotto con ragazzi (N=70) delle classi seconde e terze della scuola secondaria di primo grado. Queste classi fanno parte del progetto “Classi 2.0” promosso dal Ministero dell’Istruzione e utilizzano in maniera abituale dispositivi elettronici (tablet) attraverso una didattica mista: per le materie scientifiche vengono utilizzati esclusivamente i dispositivi elettronici, mentre per le materie umanistiche e linguistiche sia libri di testo cartacei che digitali. In questo disegno sperimentale gli studenti leggono due testi informativi, uno su carta e uno su tablet. Una parte di loro ha evidenziato il testo (N=32), l’altra si è limitata a leggerlo (N=38). È stato registrato il tempo di lettura. La comprensione del testo è stata valutata con 24 domande a risposta multipla. La calibrazione delle prestazioni è stata valutata come bias di calibrazione, sottraendo le prestazioni effettive degli studenti dal loro giudizio di comprensione. Dalle analisi preliminari è emerso che non c’è differenza significativa tra i due gruppi (evidenzia e non evidenzia) per quanto riguarda le abilità di base di comprensione del testo, mentre sembra esserci differenza significativa nelle conoscenze pregresse. Quest’ultima variabile è stata considerata nelle analisi successive. È stato considerato, inoltre, il ruolo moderatore della self – efficacy. Come ci si aspettava, gli studenti del gruppo evidenzia dedicano più tempo a leggere rispetto a quelli che non evidenziano. Se si guarda l’effetto del mezzo gli studenti sono più veloci nel digitale, dovuto forse al fatto che sono più abituati a leggere con il dispositivo elettronico. Inoltre, emerge un effetto significativo dell’autoefficacia: chi ha più alta self efficacy passa meno tempo sul testo. Nella prova di comprensione del testo non c’è effetto significativo per mezzo e condizione, ma solo le preconoscenze sono predittore positivo: gli studenti ottengono punteggi più alti alla prova di comprensione all'aumentare delle loro preconoscenze. Prendendo in considerazione il calibration bias è emersa un’interazione significativa tra condizione e autoefficacia: quando evidenziano, gli studenti che hanno bassa autoefficacia tendono a sottostimarsi, chi ha alta autoefficacia tende a sovrastimarsi. Questo effetto è maggiore su carta rispetto al dispositivo digitale

Influence of grapevine cultivar on the second generations of Lobesia botrana and Eupoecilia ambiguella

Grapevine cultivar can affect susceptibility to Lobesia botrana and Eupoecilia ambiguella with important implications on control strategies. A four-year study was carried out in north-eastern Italy on 10 cultivars (Cabernet Sauvignon, Carménère, Chardonnay, Merlot, Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, Rhine Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Terrano, Tocai Friulano and Verduzzo Friulano) grown in the same vineyard to assess whether the cultivar affects second-generation population levels of the two vine moths and L. botrana larval age composition. The influence of bunch traits measured at the peak of egg hatching on demographic parameters was also evaluated. Over the four years, L. botrana significantly prevailed over E. ambiguella in nine cultivars. Chardonnay and Tocai Friulano were the most infested cultivars and Merlot was the least infested. At the sampling date, the age composition of L. botrana varied with cultivar, with the larvae being significantly older on Chardonnay and younger on Carménère, Merlot and Verduzzo Friulano. Older larval age was significantly associated with higher bunch compactness. Larval infestation was not significantly influenced by either bunch compactness or berry volume, which suggested a more important role for contact and volatile substances mostly originating from the berries. These results allow for the improvement of Integrated Pest Management strategy against vine moths

Residual activity of insecticides applied against Lobesia botrana and its influence on resistance management strategies.

Some insect growth disruptors, in particular chitin synthesis inhibitors (benzoylphenyl ureas) and ecdysone agonists (bisacylhydrazines), show high efficacy against Lobesia botrana (Denis et Schiffermuller) (Lepidoptera Tortricidae) and are characterized by a longer residual activity than the traditional organophosphate active ingredients. Previous research had shown that the persistence of some active ingredients applied against the first generation of L. botrana also ensured control of the second generation. In this study, the residual activity of insecticides applied against the second generation was evaluated on the third generation in field trials and laboratory bioassays. Methoxyfenozide controlled the third generation at the same efficacy level (more than 90%) when applied against the second or the third generations. Some residual activity was observed in the field also for indoxacarb (efficacy 75%). In contrast, a very low residual activity (efficacy lower than 30%) was recorded for chlorpyrifos. Because a longer residual activity is associated with a higher risk of selecting insecticide resistant populations, operational resistance management strategies are discussed to ensure a longer usable life span of these insecticides

Networked partisanship and framing: A socio-semantic network analysis of the Italian debate on migration

The huge amount of data made available by the massive usage of social media has opened up the unprecedented possibility to carry out a data-driven study of political processes. While particular attention has been paid to phenomena like elite and mass polarization during online debates and echo-chambers formation, the interplay between online partisanship and framing practices, jointly sustaining adversarial dynamics, still remains overlooked. With the present paper, we carry out a socio-semantic analysis of the debate about migration policies observed on the Italian Twittersphere, across the period May-November 2019. As regards the social analysis, our methodology allows us to extract relevant information about the political orientation of the communities of users—hereby called partisan communities—without resorting upon any external information. Remarkably, our community detection technique is sensitive enough to clearly highlight the dynamics characterizing the relationship among different political forces. As regards the semantic analysis, our networks of hashtags display a mesoscale structure organized in a core-periphery fashion, across the entire observation period. Taken altogether, our results point at different, yet overlapping, trajectories of conflict played out using migration issues as a backdrop. A first line opposes communities discussing substantively of migration to communities approaching this issue just to fuel hostility against political opponents; within the second line, a mechanism of distancing between partisan communities reflects shifting political alliances within the governmental coalition. Ultimately, our results contribute to shed light on the complexity of the Italian political context characterized by multiple poles of partisan alignment