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Papers by Fortunato Musella
Cuadernos de Gobierno y Administración Pública
En el texto se mostrará el desarrollo de una tendencia monocrática en España y Italia gracias al ... more En el texto se mostrará el desarrollo de una tendencia monocrática en España y Italia gracias al uso de variables como la fragmentación y la polarización, la iniciativa legislativa y el uso de decretos de gobierno. Estos aspectos aquí se analizan en un marco de doble personalización que ve este fenómeno interpenetrando tanto el frente institucional como el de la sociedad civil. A través del análisis se llega a la conclusión que a medida que aumentan la fragmentación y la polarización de las asambleas legislativas, el ejecutivo y sobre todo su presidente adquieren una primacía. Un cambio de paradigma en el cual hoy el “principio monocrático” parece prevalecer sobre el principio “colegiado”.
In this conclusive chapter, the main thesis of the book is summed up, and question of the future ... more In this conclusive chapter, the main thesis of the book is summed up, and question of the future of political parties and democracies is raised. In particular, personalization is viewed as a “Sword of Damocles” for party leaders, as while it reinforces them as the “dominus of political parties” and sometimes of the political system, they experience several difficulties in ensuring the strength and continuity of their political actions. Moreover, a new relationship between politics and private business emerges from our study of post-presidential professional activity, posing new challenges for Western democracies and their representative mechanisms.
The article analyses recent modifications to the Constitution, or the attempts to change it, in I... more The article analyses recent modifications to the Constitution, or the attempts to change it, in Italy and Hungary, by asking whether they may be read as part of a more general process leading the heads of governments to reinforce their position. Indeed recent reform interventions strengthen political leaders in their control of policy making, by fastening the governmental action or eliminating constitutional limits on it. Conclusive remarks are devoted to consider the ongoing processes ofconstitution making in Italy and Hungary, as part of a new phase of constitutionalism showing the passage from party-dominated parliaments to personal leaders Keywords: Political Leaders; Presidentialization; Constitution; Constitution Making; Constitutional Change
... Rachel K. Gibson, Andrea Rommele & Stephan J. Ward (a cura di) (2004). Electronic Democra... more ... Rachel K. Gibson, Andrea Rommele & Stephan J. Ward (a cura di) (2004). Electronic Democracy. Mobilisation, organisation and participation via new Icts. Titolo Rivista: COMUNICAZIONE POLITICA. Autori/Curatori: Fortunato Musella, recensione. ...
This chapter deals with career paths of political leaders by showing how they do not stop with po... more This chapter deals with career paths of political leaders by showing how they do not stop with politics, but continue through a complex system of relationships that politics opens up for them. Whether we are talking about advisory and/or consultancy posts, or company directorships, the number of democratic leaders who go into business following the end of their term in office is steadily increasing. These leaders make full use of the personal and professional skills that guaranteed their original rise to power, but they also rely on government networks. Very often, the new generation of “leaders in business” use their term in office as a springboard toward a post-presidential future that is more active and better paid than their previous post.
fascinazione mediterranea?-2. La fattispecie aperta della forma di governo.-3. La prassi della no... more fascinazione mediterranea?-2. La fattispecie aperta della forma di governo.-3. La prassi della normazione-4. Convenzioni, contratti, criteri di rilevanza.-5. Conclusioni. Le sorti del governo democratico. * Sottoposto a referaggio.
This paper analyses the experience of the IPSAMOOC project, a collaboration between Federica Web ... more This paper analyses the experience of the IPSAMOOC project, a collaboration between Federica Web Learning, the International Association of Political Science (IPSA), and the International Association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to embrace the opportunities offered by technology and deliver a series of Political Science MOOCs in open-access. The paper looks at the results emerging from these courses and illustrates how this specific MOOC project has provided unexpected opportunities for enhanced academic network building, because of the diverse processes and strategies involved in the creation, dissemination, delivery and exploitation of a MOOC.
In the last years many reports, produced by both governments and international institutions, are ... more In the last years many reports, produced by both governments and international institutions, are focused on electronic democracy, the new frontier for transparency and citizen participation in government activities. Yet, despite of the great entity of investments, the implementations of digital policies have not led to expected outcomes. This essays analyzes the ideology of electronic democracy by answering to this following critical questions: why so much attention is on e-democracy? How is it studied? Can we identify a common ideological background in works and reports devoted to this theme? Beyond rhetoric and promises, this articles discusses the nature of e-democracy’s project by comparing contributes from different countries. It shows risks of digital divide as well as attempts to western citinzenship, keeping in mind that new forms of dependency should be hidden in the dream of digital polis.
Contemporary Italian Politics, 2020
Personalization is the most relevant political phenomenon of our time. With the weakening of the ... more Personalization is the most relevant political phenomenon of our time. With the weakening of the structural and ideological foundations of Western democracies, a radical shift from collective to individual actors and institutions has occurred in several political systems. Since the 1990s, Italy has provided one of the most evident examples of the rapid shift from particracy to the centrality of political leaders. The forerunner of the incisive changes leading to this centrality, Berlusconi's Forza Italia provided a new model of party organization by combining dominance of the leader with a direct relationship with citizens. During the last two decades, such a model has largely proved able to prosper through successful appeals to citizens located on both the left and right sides of the political spectrum. Yet, especially since the 2013 general election with the rapid rise of the Five-star Movement, it has become increasingly clear that personal parties have been changing their scope and organizational structures through the extensive use of new technologies. This article aims at understanding the evolution of personal parties by investigating how they organize and communicate with their supporters, with particular reference to Italy's new brand of populist party.
Political Leaders Beyond Party Politics, 2018
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
Acta Politica, 2017
Political leaders are becoming the key actor in democratic systems, by concentrating power in the... more Political leaders are becoming the key actor in democratic systems, by concentrating power in their hands at the top of political parties and government. Consequently, a relevant strand of political science literature has been devoting to understand how democratic politics is changing under the impact of the process of personalisation of politics, one of the more relevant trends in the recent years. A new and sometimes contested category, ''presidentialisation'', has been also forged in order to indicate that many political systems are starting to act in a more similar way to presidential regimes. Moreover, several scholars are accepting the challenge to apply comparative methods on a large set of countries to catch why, when and where presidentialisation occurs. Inserted in this theoretical framework, the book edited by Gianluca Passarelli adds new knowledge to our understanding of presidentialisation of political parties, by observing 11 democracies belonging to the three traditional regime types: presidential, semi-presidential and parliamentary. The work moves from two starting hypotheses (a) that presidentialisation is a phenomenon that may arise necessarily in presidential systems, or sometimes in semi-presidential ones under some circumstances; and (b) that the genetic characteristic of political parties acts as an intervening variable capable of accentuating the process of presidentialisation. Yet, although the volume offers a relevant reflection on the institutional change in contemporary democracies, it doesn't often confirm such statements. Starting from the first hypothesis, the volume borrows the scheme of analysis provided by Samuels and Shugart (2010) according to which regime's institutional foundations shape political behaviour because of their inescapable institutional traits. Quite obviously, presidentialised parties are typical of presidential countries:
Rivista Italiana di scienza politica, 2012
Cuadernos de Gobierno y Administración Pública
En el texto se mostrará el desarrollo de una tendencia monocrática en España y Italia gracias al ... more En el texto se mostrará el desarrollo de una tendencia monocrática en España y Italia gracias al uso de variables como la fragmentación y la polarización, la iniciativa legislativa y el uso de decretos de gobierno. Estos aspectos aquí se analizan en un marco de doble personalización que ve este fenómeno interpenetrando tanto el frente institucional como el de la sociedad civil. A través del análisis se llega a la conclusión que a medida que aumentan la fragmentación y la polarización de las asambleas legislativas, el ejecutivo y sobre todo su presidente adquieren una primacía. Un cambio de paradigma en el cual hoy el “principio monocrático” parece prevalecer sobre el principio “colegiado”.
In this conclusive chapter, the main thesis of the book is summed up, and question of the future ... more In this conclusive chapter, the main thesis of the book is summed up, and question of the future of political parties and democracies is raised. In particular, personalization is viewed as a “Sword of Damocles” for party leaders, as while it reinforces them as the “dominus of political parties” and sometimes of the political system, they experience several difficulties in ensuring the strength and continuity of their political actions. Moreover, a new relationship between politics and private business emerges from our study of post-presidential professional activity, posing new challenges for Western democracies and their representative mechanisms.
The article analyses recent modifications to the Constitution, or the attempts to change it, in I... more The article analyses recent modifications to the Constitution, or the attempts to change it, in Italy and Hungary, by asking whether they may be read as part of a more general process leading the heads of governments to reinforce their position. Indeed recent reform interventions strengthen political leaders in their control of policy making, by fastening the governmental action or eliminating constitutional limits on it. Conclusive remarks are devoted to consider the ongoing processes ofconstitution making in Italy and Hungary, as part of a new phase of constitutionalism showing the passage from party-dominated parliaments to personal leaders Keywords: Political Leaders; Presidentialization; Constitution; Constitution Making; Constitutional Change
... Rachel K. Gibson, Andrea Rommele & Stephan J. Ward (a cura di) (2004). Electronic Democra... more ... Rachel K. Gibson, Andrea Rommele & Stephan J. Ward (a cura di) (2004). Electronic Democracy. Mobilisation, organisation and participation via new Icts. Titolo Rivista: COMUNICAZIONE POLITICA. Autori/Curatori: Fortunato Musella, recensione. ...
This chapter deals with career paths of political leaders by showing how they do not stop with po... more This chapter deals with career paths of political leaders by showing how they do not stop with politics, but continue through a complex system of relationships that politics opens up for them. Whether we are talking about advisory and/or consultancy posts, or company directorships, the number of democratic leaders who go into business following the end of their term in office is steadily increasing. These leaders make full use of the personal and professional skills that guaranteed their original rise to power, but they also rely on government networks. Very often, the new generation of “leaders in business” use their term in office as a springboard toward a post-presidential future that is more active and better paid than their previous post.
fascinazione mediterranea?-2. La fattispecie aperta della forma di governo.-3. La prassi della no... more fascinazione mediterranea?-2. La fattispecie aperta della forma di governo.-3. La prassi della normazione-4. Convenzioni, contratti, criteri di rilevanza.-5. Conclusioni. Le sorti del governo democratico. * Sottoposto a referaggio.
This paper analyses the experience of the IPSAMOOC project, a collaboration between Federica Web ... more This paper analyses the experience of the IPSAMOOC project, a collaboration between Federica Web Learning, the International Association of Political Science (IPSA), and the International Association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to embrace the opportunities offered by technology and deliver a series of Political Science MOOCs in open-access. The paper looks at the results emerging from these courses and illustrates how this specific MOOC project has provided unexpected opportunities for enhanced academic network building, because of the diverse processes and strategies involved in the creation, dissemination, delivery and exploitation of a MOOC.
In the last years many reports, produced by both governments and international institutions, are ... more In the last years many reports, produced by both governments and international institutions, are focused on electronic democracy, the new frontier for transparency and citizen participation in government activities. Yet, despite of the great entity of investments, the implementations of digital policies have not led to expected outcomes. This essays analyzes the ideology of electronic democracy by answering to this following critical questions: why so much attention is on e-democracy? How is it studied? Can we identify a common ideological background in works and reports devoted to this theme? Beyond rhetoric and promises, this articles discusses the nature of e-democracy’s project by comparing contributes from different countries. It shows risks of digital divide as well as attempts to western citinzenship, keeping in mind that new forms of dependency should be hidden in the dream of digital polis.
Contemporary Italian Politics, 2020
Personalization is the most relevant political phenomenon of our time. With the weakening of the ... more Personalization is the most relevant political phenomenon of our time. With the weakening of the structural and ideological foundations of Western democracies, a radical shift from collective to individual actors and institutions has occurred in several political systems. Since the 1990s, Italy has provided one of the most evident examples of the rapid shift from particracy to the centrality of political leaders. The forerunner of the incisive changes leading to this centrality, Berlusconi's Forza Italia provided a new model of party organization by combining dominance of the leader with a direct relationship with citizens. During the last two decades, such a model has largely proved able to prosper through successful appeals to citizens located on both the left and right sides of the political spectrum. Yet, especially since the 2013 general election with the rapid rise of the Five-star Movement, it has become increasingly clear that personal parties have been changing their scope and organizational structures through the extensive use of new technologies. This article aims at understanding the evolution of personal parties by investigating how they organize and communicate with their supporters, with particular reference to Italy's new brand of populist party.
Political Leaders Beyond Party Politics, 2018
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
Acta Politica, 2017
Political leaders are becoming the key actor in democratic systems, by concentrating power in the... more Political leaders are becoming the key actor in democratic systems, by concentrating power in their hands at the top of political parties and government. Consequently, a relevant strand of political science literature has been devoting to understand how democratic politics is changing under the impact of the process of personalisation of politics, one of the more relevant trends in the recent years. A new and sometimes contested category, ''presidentialisation'', has been also forged in order to indicate that many political systems are starting to act in a more similar way to presidential regimes. Moreover, several scholars are accepting the challenge to apply comparative methods on a large set of countries to catch why, when and where presidentialisation occurs. Inserted in this theoretical framework, the book edited by Gianluca Passarelli adds new knowledge to our understanding of presidentialisation of political parties, by observing 11 democracies belonging to the three traditional regime types: presidential, semi-presidential and parliamentary. The work moves from two starting hypotheses (a) that presidentialisation is a phenomenon that may arise necessarily in presidential systems, or sometimes in semi-presidential ones under some circumstances; and (b) that the genetic characteristic of political parties acts as an intervening variable capable of accentuating the process of presidentialisation. Yet, although the volume offers a relevant reflection on the institutional change in contemporary democracies, it doesn't often confirm such statements. Starting from the first hypothesis, the volume borrows the scheme of analysis provided by Samuels and Shugart (2010) according to which regime's institutional foundations shape political behaviour because of their inescapable institutional traits. Quite obviously, presidentialised parties are typical of presidential countries:
Rivista Italiana di scienza politica, 2012