The U.S. vote behind us has strikingly shown how the intertwining of communication and respect (or rather disrespect) for reality data is one of the most pressing issues for anyone whose duty it is to communicate. Between fake news and deep fakes, between a distorted and distorting use of Artificial Intelligence and navigating waters where perception matters more than reality and where data appear as a burden and not a necessity, one risks losing the thread.
It is from this awareness that the idea of DataPolis Winter School was born, intended for young people and professionals who want to get up to speed. The school is the result of the initiative of the NetPolitics association and promoter of the Manifesto on the Responsible Use of Data on the subject (https://netpoliticsaps.it/winter-school/). The Winter School, promoted by NetPolitics and WeStart, is an initiative curated by the scientific committee of DataPolis, directed by Professor Gianluca Passarelli, and sponsored by the Municipality of Bagheria, Assostampa Siciliana, FNSI union and the national association for the promotion of digital public communication PA Social and will offer three intensive modules on big data and big politics, data governance and its impact on journalism and public communication.
Four days of lectures scheduled from December 12 to 15 in Bagheria, with the support of the Sicilian municipality.
The school hosted in cozy and functional spaces will see the participation of lecturers and experts (journalists, communicators, scholars of the subject) and will see or also a lectio by Guido Scorza, a member of the Guarantor Authority for the Protection of Personal Data.

<<DataPolis Winter School,” explains Valentina Sacchetta president of the NetPolitics association, ”will be an important opportunity to confront each other but above all to give training materials to those who work in the world of communication, looking especially at political and social communication, passing through institutional communication. We grasp the risk of a society in which we are on the one hand inundated with data (whose origin is not always verified and certain) that are used to communicate. But it is precisely in this interweaving of data and communication that a short circuit seems to occur. Here the school wants to be an opportunity for us to confront each other and to choose together-those who teach and those who learn perhaps already playing a professional role in this world-the paths for a verified, responsible correct use of data and information. Our world, our society, relies more and more on the collection and circulation of data and its use in communication; two worlds intertwined with complex implications and tools that we want to discover and understand.
With the help of our guests, at DataPolis Winter School we will investigate the relationship between communication and data in different professional junctures-from journalism to social media management to more institutional contexts-we will identify the tools and techniques of each and learn how to use them. Awareness of the issues allows us to be more true to reality, more at the service of those who need to be informed and reached by the communicative message.>>

<<False data but also their misuse,” adds Gianluca Passarelli, who leads the scientific committee, ”are a poison for democracy. Governments, mass media and citizens use a lot of data, but often improperly. The School aims to provide useful tools and concepts for politicians, journalists and citizens>>.

<<We are delighted that Bagheria will host the DataPolis Winter School. This nationwide initiative is essential in an age when information is within everyone’s reach, but its quality and use are often in question,” says Bagheria Mayor Filippo Maria Tripoli. ”In an age characterized by an overabundance of information and the spread of fake news, it is crucial to promote a culture of verification and critical thinking. The school will offer valuable tools for navigating the complex world of data and communication. I thank the organizers for choosing our city and invite everyone to attend>>.

The program (which includes exercises, meetings and lectures in which numerous guests, including professionals and experts, will take turns) is curated by the Scientific Committee led by prof. Gianluca Passarelli (full professor of Political Science, Sapienza University), and will feature among others Alberto Solieri, Vincent Russo (il Fatto quotidiano), Serenella Ravaioli (Istat), MorisGasparri, Mattia Tarelli (YouTube), Piero Badaloni and Sonia Montegiove, Guido Scorza (of the Italian Data Protection Authority), Daniele Cinà (social media strategist to the mayor of Rome), Luana Lavecchia (tik Tok Italia) Nicolò Carboni and Nicolò Di Tommasi, Domenico Giordano (Arcadia and XXI Secolo – Rai Uno) Luigi Di Gregorio (spin doctor and adjunct professor of Political Science at the Department of Humanities, Communication and Tourism Sciences at the University of Tuscia).

For participation in the Winter School consult the NetPolitics website.
The course will be held starting Thursday, Dec. 12 after 2 p.m. and institutional greetings, and followed by Friday, Dec. 13 and Saturday, Dec. 14 until 5 p.m. at the Villa Butera Theater in Bagheria.
Admission is free while places last after registration, which must be done by sending an email to: info@netpolitics.it
More information: www.netpoliticsaps.it/winter-school/

Contacts:
For Registration.
Lorenzo Salmi – 339 629 9773

Press office Municipality of Bagheria
Marina Mancini – 347 001 4952
ufficio.stampa@comune.bagheria.pa.it