Alcuni nodi della comunicazione pubblica digitale di fronte alla pandemia

Le regioni italiane su Facebook durante il lockdown

Abstract

The article addresses the role of institutional public communication during the Covid-19 pandemic, a communication intended as a service for the citizen, apolitical, that institutions should cultivate with competence and awareness, especially in times of crisis and emergency.  The pandemic has led to an acceleration of the use of digital media by institutions to cope with what, in the context of an epochal health emergency, can be considered a communication emergency, made complex by the infodemic. The need was therefore felt to understand how institutions were using social media and with what impact on citizens, referring to the consolidated national and international literature on public communication or public sector communication.

The article focuses on the Italian case, with specific attention to the role of the regions which appeared to be crucial in addressing the critical situation and communicating adequately with citizens, right from the first phase of the pandemic. In particular, the contribution analyzes the way in which regional authorities have curated content on Covid-19 on their official Facebook page, the most popular social network among Italians, also considering the impact produced on online audiences (level of engagement).

The article illustrates a quantitative-qualitative research conducted in 2020, based on the collection and analysis of all the posts generated by the Italian regions on Facebook (official page of the institution), from the beginning of the pandemic to the end of the lockdown (30 January - May 3, 2020). The posts were classified on the basis of a categorization of Covid-19 issues by the researchers. Interesting elements emerge from the results of this study, such as: an exponential growth in the followers of the pages in the period considered, an almost exclusive treatment of issues relating to Covid-19 by the regions; a particular attention of the institutions to the communication on epidemiological-health data and on the rules to deal with the emergency which, however, does not correspond to a high involvement of the online public which appears to be higher in relation to other issues (such as Fake news and behaviors to avoid contagion) to which the regions have dedicated less space on the platform.

The article also reports a brief qualitative analysis on the way in which the regions have managed the communication on epidemiological and health data. The analysis reveals similarities and differences between regions that lead to reflect on the need to increase statistical and data communication skills, in a widespread manner in the Italian public ddministrations and, more generally, to enhance digital communication skills among public communicators, safeguarding a multi-channel and inclusive strategic communication approach, to avoid generating inequalities among citizens.