12121 - History of the Radio and the Television (A-L)

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course students will:

- know the fundamentals of the history of Italian radio and television from fascism to the present day;

- know how to integrate the history of media and programs within the Italian social and cultural history;

- connect the Italian history of radio and television with the general development of media abroad;

- know how to analyse a television program and its production processes.

Course contents

This course is divided into two parts. The first part of the lectures will deal with the birth of radio and television in Italy and the most significant stages of this process, focusing on some of the most important moments for determining the current structure of the two media, to provide students with an articulated frame of the Italian radio-television panorama. The story of the two media will be accompanied by notions about mass communications (audience, public service broadcasting, social effects of media) and comparisons with the American and European system.

The second part of the course will focus on television series, scheduling, formats and reality and factual programming, analysing several significant case studies.

Readings/Bibliography

Students are required to prepare the following bibliography:

- Irene Piazzoni, Storia delle televisioni in Italia. Dagli esordi alla web tv, Carocci, Roma 2014.

- Tiziano Bonini (a cura di), La radio in Italia. Storia, mercati, formati, pubblici, tecnologie, Carocci, Roma 2013 [only pp. 1-210].

- Veronica Innocenti, Guglielmo Pescatore, Le nuove forme della serialità televisiva. Storia, linguaggio e temi, Archetipolibri, Bologna 2008.

- Luca Barra, Palinsesto. Storia e tecnica della programmazione televisiva, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2015.

Teaching methods

Due to the restrictions imposed by the current health emergency, teaching will be carried out in the following didactic manner:


- blended:


The course is conducted in blended learning mode. This means that some lessons will be held in the classroom (frontal teaching for a total of 40 hours) others using the IOL platform (online activities and exercises for a total of 20 hours). All the lessons scheduled on Thursday will take place with activities arranged on the University's IOL platform. On Mondays and Fridays the lessons will take place in presence, on those days the teacher will always be present in the classroom designated for teaching, students will alternate in presence according to a schedule of shifts being defined (more detailed information about the shift and how to access the lesson in presence will be provided later). It will always be possible to connect remotely and follow live streaming of the lessons in the classroom via TEAMS platform.


The teaching of History of radio and television also includes the support of slides, the use of clips, documentaries and audiovisual media, web sources, and the sharing of teaching materials through IOL. The course will also host meetings with experts in the radio and television sector. The teaching will also take place with the use of the "Acadly" app aimed at stimulating interaction with students.


During the first lesson all the teaching methods and tools used will be introduced.


WARNING: Given the fluidity of the emergency situation we are experiencing and since this program will be published in July 2020, it is possible that the teaching methods will change in the coming months. In this case, timely communication will be given through an update of this program, as well as through appropriate notices published on the usual institutional channels, namely: notices published on the teacher's page (https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/veronica.innocenti ), on the website of the DAMS Degree Course (https://corsi.unibo.it/laurea/DAMS ) and on the official FB page of the DAMS Degree Course (https://www.facebook.com/dams.unibo/ ) which all students are invited to consult periodically.

Assessment methods

The exam consists of a written examination, during which the student's knowledge of the basics of radio and television history will be verified. There will be no oral tests.


To take the exam it is necessary to subscribe to the list through the AlmaEsami service. Non-registered students will not be admitted to take the exam. The exam is usually held in computer equipped classrooms: in order to rationalize its use, it is necessary that the students enrolled, if they decide not to take the exam, will be deleted from the roll call list. Please also remember that it is necessary to show up for the appeal with your UniBo credentials and with an identification document.


Students who have included the exam in their study plan in academic years prior to the academic year 2018/2019 are invited to contact the teacher to agree on how to take the exam.


Students with DSA who need adaptations are requested to write to the teacher with the DSA Student Office in cc.




For those who do not attend the final written test will be composed of 11 closed questions with multiple choice of a notionistic nature and concerning the history of the two media (1 point each), and 5 open questions concerning the texts indicated in the bibliography (up to 4 points each).




There will be two tests for those attending: an in itinere test that will be held during the course (approximately at the end of the first 30 hours of lessons), with 31 closed questions with multiple choice on the history of radio and television, and an appeal reserved only for those attending at the end of the course, with 3 open questions on the topics dealt with in the classroom and on the texts indicated in the bibliography, according to the indications that will be provided during the lessons. The final evaluation will also determine the consistency and accuracy with which the students attending will have carried out the viewing and reading activities and the exercises planned through the IOL platform.


The achievement of an organic vision of the topics addressed, the possession of a specific language, the ability of orientation in the history of radio and television, as well as the ability to connect media history and social and cultural context will be evaluated with marks of excellence. A manual knowledge of the subject, ability to synthesise and analyse in a non-articulated way or a correct but not always appropriate language, such as a scholastic domain of the discipline, lead to discrete evaluations. Educational gaps or inappropriate language, such as a poor knowledge of media history, lead to grades on the threshold of sufficiency. Educational gaps, inappropriate language, lack of orientation within the bibliography and inability to analyse are evaluated negatively.

Teaching tools

Presentations, projection of audiovisual material (programs, documentaries), use of clips and archive material through YouTube and Teche Rai, links and resources available online, meetings with radio and television professionals. TEAMS platform, IOL and Acadly app.

Office hours

See the website of Veronica Innocenti