Désintermédiation et populisme: L’emploi d’internet par le Mouvement 5 Étoiles

Disintermediation, that is the process of removing an intermediary from a relationship, is an increasingly relevant phenomenon in contemporary societies, also fostered by the diffusion of new technologies. In the political field, disintermediation processes can be seen in the trend towards (apparently) more direct and immediate forms of political mediation. The adversity towards mediations, whether of structural or procedural nature, is an invariant feature of populist manifestations: populists seem to be the best interpreters of disintermediation processes, because of the correspondence between certain features of populism and the characteristics of new technologies. The aim of this article is three- fold. First, it will define the concept of political disintermediation. Second, it will analyse the connection between the concept of disintermediation and populism, and the relationship between the internet and populism. Finally, through this interpretative framework, it will examine the case of the Five Star Movement, in particular its use of the Internet.