Media and Politics in Contemporary Italy

Alessandro D’Arma is senior lecturer at the University of Westminster.

• 1. Berlusconi, Politics and the Media2. Public Service Broadcasting and Political Independence3. The Politics of Broadcasting Policy in Berlusconi’s Italy 4. Media Pluralism in Digital Italy 5. Political Journalism, Italian-style 6. Internet Politics and the Rise of Beppe Grillo’s Five-Star Movement

This is a comprehensive and concise analysis of the most important developments in Italian media and politics over the last twenty years. D'Arma effectively combines key insights from media research, political science, and historical research to capture both where the Italian situation is truly exceptional and where it is more broadly indicative of the changing relations between old media platforms, new digital technologies, and the deeply rooted political, economic, and cultural factors that shape how they develop. A welcome contribution to our understanding of Italy—and of media and politics more broadly.