STAMPA E OPINIONE PUBBLICA IN ITALIA AL TEMPO DELLA GUERRA CON L'IMPERO OTTOMANO

In coincidence with the war against the Ottoman Empire (September 1911-October 1918) to acquire the possession of the Libyan territories, in Italy came into full evidence a phenomenon which started to manifest itself at the beginning of the century: the changed function of the newspapers from instruments of information and discussion meant for limited élites cultured or accultureted in real mass means, able to direct and mobilize the public opinion. The Libyan war marked a breakthrough in the relations press-public opinion-political power. In the essay three separate phases are identified: the preparation, the war, the peace, and for each of them are taken into consideration the positions of the most accredited newspapers of opinion and of political party dailys. It is evident that, in the first period, we witnessed a general mixing up of rôles between papers pro and anti-Giolittians and that the press campaign in favour of the armed intervention brought to the highest pitch by some journalists even at the cost of unsettling the professional deontological principles had a great importance in creating that diffused consensus about the prospect of the war that Giolitti considered indispensable before assuming the binding decision. The comparative examination of the newspapers during the months of the war and during the peace negotiations suggests some observations on the political field and in particular on the nationalist movement that, taking advantage of this opportunity, was able to establish itself diffusely in the society and increased its own consensus, with verifiable consequences, at long term when, the day following the first world war, Fascism made itself known partly making use also of the discussed thematics of the « National Idea » or by periodicals as « II Mattino » or « La Rassegna nazionale » in 1911-1912.