Are Italian universities reassessing their communication in the age of social unrest?

How can organizations recover the trust of their stakeholders in an era when the principle of credibility is under- mined by crises that break the stability of social systems from the ground up? Framed as organizations and educating communities, Universities are not immune from an analysis of their governance processes, in order to overcome the social gaps (Canel, Luoma-aho 2019) that strongly emerged from the covid19 pandemic and chart a new course capable of stemming the challenge of disillusionment that characterizes Gen. Z. Assuming that no structural change is exempt from the revision of communicative practices (Lombardinilo 2019), universities are adopting (still tentatively) new forms of dialogue, characterized by the integration of different levels and directions (Lovari, Ducci 2022) with more complex ecosystems mutually convergent (Jenkins 2013). The push- es toward inclusion, social responsibility and sustainability aim at the construction of the future-oriented university (EUA 2021) moving from tentative approaches to true measurable outcomes and impact. However, a sudden translation of communication in the digital context, the chaos generated by information clutter, the paradox of infodemics, and other often underestimated factors of always-on, however, present just as many prominent risks, as the lack of awareness that transferring cannot be merely moving content from a previous context to a new one, but completely rethinking the purpose of communication (Pireddu 2023). Facing this evolving scenario, a multi-step research methodological approach is needed, with the purpose to ex- plore the conceptual dimensions and the operational activities implemented by universities to give communication a new strategic role. In the first phase of the survey, the delegates for communication of six Italian Universities (Sapienza University of Rome, Macerata, Calabria, Urbino, Milano Statale, Chieti-Pescara) will be interviewed with the purpose to under- stand how their universities are coping with the post-pandemic communicative scenario and emphasize what enforcement digital communication reached in the last two years about the strategies of inclusion and account- ability within academic environments. In the second phase of the survey, the websites of the six involved universities will be investigated (with an in-depth analysis) with the aim to analyze what communicative evidence universities are supporting in line with the infor- mative and narrative tasks imposed by the new communicative scenarios engendered by post-pandemic needs. Considering some major trends in the public communication sector (Canel 2018; Lovari et al. 2020; Van Dijck et al. 2018; Sorice 2020) and in the light of other researches on the italian universities context, we expect to collect some primary findings as an increasing effort of universities in a more relational, visual and impactful communication. This new model aims at disseminating user-generated content, exploiting the power of new social networks (Instagram, Threads and also TikTok); a decisive shift towards inclusion and accountability, with the purpose to generate shared values (Grunig 2016) within academic communities and its differences (f.i. sensibilities for LGBTQIA+ community, people with disabilities, international students).