I social: una nuova mediatizzazione della politica? Il caso @matteosalviniofficial su Instagram

This paper aims to rethink the features of ‘mediatized’ political communication within a ‘hybrid media system’ in which the social networks accounts of political leaders are becoming increasingly important. Firstly, the paper summarizes the main aspects of ‘mediatisation’, as it has been analysed in relation to the mass media system. Then, we discuss the concepts of ‘disintermediation’ and the new forms of ‘mediation’ specific to social platforms. The analysis shows that ‘disintermediation’ does not lead to the end of ‘mediatization’. On the contrary, we emphasise the need to support the ‘mass media logic’ based on the interweaving of ‘professional norms’, ‘entertainment’, and a ‘social logic’ built on the ‘definition of identity’ by selectively sharing online content and exploiting the creative potential of digital media. Politicians now prioritise social media over traditional media to play the role of ‘social opinion leaders’. From these hypotheses, we analyse the posts published between January 2019 and March 2019 on the ‘matteosalviniofficial’ Instagram account. The analysis shows a tendency towards a ‘remediation’ of traditional contents and a creative use of digital images (which are adapted and modified) to convey a sense of immediacy. Additionally, the use of codes typical of mass media ‘mediatization’ emerged, but in a context in which they change their strategic role and take on a new communicative function. All these aspects have strengthened the idea that social media, in a relationship of complementarity and interdependence with mass media, steer political communication towards the selection and repetition of a coherent set of identity traits.