The Italian Public Sphere: a Case of Dramatized Polarization

This contribution is organized along two main interpretive lines. First of all, the Italian public sphere is very polarized because of well-established historical attitudes, a crowded media market and new technologies that push towards segmentation of the audience. The arrival of Berlusconi has only reinforced the already existing polarization that goes well beyond the borders of partisanship involving the content of news, the structure and professionalism of news outlets and also the recipients that divide themselves along the lines of political attitudes. The second characteristic feature of the Italian public sphere involves the tendency towards dramatization, which is also produced by the sudden commercialization of the entire mass media system that started in 1980. This article’s thesis is supported by examples of dramatization and extreme political discourse. The consequences that derive from this situation are discussed in the conclusion.