Digital Hyperleaders: Communication Strategies on Social Networks at the 2019 European Elections

This article investigates the state of development of the electoral communication of Italian political leaders at the elections for the 2019 European Parliament. The aim was to verify which attitudes and forms of adaptation used in the communication strategies of so-called ‘hyperleaders’ have developed towards the network media logic. The research considers the following analytical dimensions: the extent of leaders’ fan bases; the effect of publication frequency in terms of engagement; the effect of issue management in terms of engagement, and the effect of emotionalization of messages in terms of engagement. The results suggest the consolidation of a digital model of communication via social networks that connects, above all, Salvini, Di Maio and Meloni. They have in common specific attitudes and forms of adaptation to the network media logic, i.e. eminently a much greater capacity to engage in relation to the largeness of the public, the strategic use of key issues and emotional frame management