ORCID: 0000-0002-2813-6511 [http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2813-6511]
EDUCATION
2002 PhD in Semiotics, director Umberto Eco, University of Bologna, Italy (18/03/2002)
1996 Laurea degree cum laude (equivalent to a Master’s degree) in Philosophy, University of Bologna, Italy
CURRENT POSITION
2023 - Full professor, Department of Arts, University of Bologna, Italy
o Teaching and research in Cultural Semiotics, Media and Journalism Studies
o Supervisor of PhD and postdoctoral research on Cultural Semiotics and Media and Journalism Studies
PREVIOUS POSITIONS
2014-2023 Associate professor, Department of Philosophy and Communication Studies, University of Bologna, Italy
2006-2014 Research assistant, Department of Communication Studies, University of Bologna, Italy
2002-2006 Post-doc researcher, Department of Communication Studies, University of Bologna, Italy
INSTITUTIONAL RESPONSABILITIES
2024- Academic Board Member of the PhD program in Arts, History and Society, Department of the Arts, University of Bologna, Italy
2024- Academic Board Member of the National Phd Program in Cultural Heritage Sciences, Department of History, Cultural Heritage, Education, and Society, University of Roma Tre, Italy
2023 - University Delegate for Teaching for the Department of the Arts, University of Bologna, Italy
2023- Manager in charge of Orientation and Tutoring Plan for the Department of the Arts, University of Bologna, Italy
2018-2023 President of the Bachelor's degree in Communication Studies, University of Bologna
2014-2023 Member of the PhD program in Philosophy, Science, Cognition, and Semiotics (PSCS), University of Bologna, Italy
2016- Director of the Master’s in Publishing, University of Bologna, Italy
2016- Member of the Scientific Council of the Umberto Eco International Center for the Humanities, University of Bologna
FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
2024 Research grant for Directeurs d’Études Associés (DEA) – Fondation Maison de l’Homme, Paris, for a research about «Forgetting and the right to be forgotten in the contemporary infosphere» (October 2-November 4)
INVITED KEYNOTES
>20 invited talks all over the world
I've selected here only the keynote talks where, over the past five years, my research was focused on the relationship between reality and fiction. Working on media, I’ve been always considered both verbal and visual dimensions. Starting with a reflection on the concept of truth in contemporary disinformation and a strong reworking of Umberto Eco's theoretical legacy, which informed my education, my focus today is on how the concepts of "real," "authentic," and "truth" are changing thanks to media and new technologies. This has been the focus of all my recent talks. “Reality at Risk” (the title of one of my last talk) the best synthesis of my research “feelings”.
- Dés)accords: à la recherche de la différence propice. Lyon, 11-14 june 2019
- Changing Media in a Changing world. The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, 10-12 May 2021
- Anthropology of Communication –organized by Derrick de Kerchove, Politecnico di Milano, 2 Dece.2021
- Presence of the Pasts. Semiotic and Digital Approaches to Memory and Heritage. International Center for the Humanities 'Umberto Eco' - University of Bologna // School of Humanities - Tallinn University, 8 june 2022
- Facts, fictions, and other truth claims. University of Bergen (Norway), May 2024
- Libraries, Encyclopedias and other labyrinths in the Semiotics of Umberto Eco. Princeton University, March 2024
-The Force of False and the Weakness of Truth. Princeton University, May 2025
- Reality at Risk: when Conspiracy Theory Becomes Documentary. Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies-Pisa, in cooperation with the Center for Research on Antisemitism (ZfA) at Technische Universität Berlin, June 2025
-The Umberto Eco’s novels: the role of fiction.University of Tokyo, October 2025
LEADING EDITORIAL ROLES (most prestigious ones)
· 2019 on – Member of the editorial board of the journal Comunicazioni sociali - Journal of Media,
Performing Arts and Cultural Studies (ranked A journal, i.e. top academic journal in the Italian
evaluation system): https://comunicazionisociali.vitaepensiero.it/
· 2019 on – Member of the editorial board of the journal Acta semiotica: https://actasemiotica.com/index.php/as
· 2018 on – Associate Editor for Brill Research Perspectives in Popular Culture
https://brill.com/view/journals/rppc/rppc-overview.xml?contents=editorialcontent-49636
· 2017 on – Member of the scientific board of the journal E/C (ranked A journal, i.e. top academic
journal in the Italian evaluation system) https://mimesisjournals.com/ojs/index.php/ec/issue/view/100
· 2016 – Member of the Scientific Board of the international journal “Comunicaciòn y medios” (Chile)
· 2015 - Member of the Scientific Board of the international journal “Actes Sémiotiques” (ranked A
journal, i.e. top academic journal in the Italian evaluation system):
· 2015 - Member of the Scientific Board of the international journal of South American semiotics “De
SIGNIS”
· 2013-2016 Director of the book series “Temi semiotici” (Bononia University
Press, Bologna)
· 2013 on – Deputy editor of the international journal of Semiotics “Versus” (ranked A journal, i.e. top academic journal in the Italian evaluation system)
· 1998-2013 Member of the editorial board of the international journal of Semiotics “Versus” (ranked
A journal, i.e. top academic journal in
MEMBERSHIP AND SERVICES IN SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES
2024- Member of the Executive Committee of the International Association of Semiotics (IASS)
2017-2021 President of the Italian Association of Semiotic Studies
2015- Member of the Italian Society of Philosophy of Language
2010- Member of the International Association of Semiotics (IASS)
2009- Member of the Scientific Board of the Centre for the Semiotic Study of Memory (TRAME) at Bologna University
2007- Member of the Executive Board of the International Centre on Memory at San Marino University
ORGANIZATION OF MAJOR CONFERENCES
2019 Post-truth. Philosophy, Sociology and Media Studies, 3 days international conference, hosted by Department of Philosophy and Communication Studies – University of Bologna
2023 Spaces of Memory: Questioning Traumatic Heritage, final conference of the EU-Horizons “Speme” Project, hosted by Dept. of Arts, University of Bologna
2025 Duties of Memory, Rights and Practices of Oblivion, 2 days international conference, hosted by Dept. of Arts, University of Bologna
SUPERVISION OF GRADUATE STUDENTS AND POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWS
Supervision of 5 PhD students and around 60 Master Thesis.
Among the PhD research, the last one (Marco Giacomazzi,– PhD in Philosophy, Science, Cognition, and Semiotics (PSCS), University of Bologna) was particularly closed to many aspects developed in AuthenticEye: “Limits and Folds of the Digital Device: a Unified Semiotics for Media Technologies”
Currently, I am the supervisor of a two-year research fellowship on AI-generated images, war imaginary and cultural memory, awarded through a national competitive funding program and ranked n.1 project in the Humanities at the University of Bologna. The researcher and I are working on how AI-generated images of contemporary wars are used to create plausible and credible visualisations of peaceful futures.
COORDINATION OF RESEARCH PROJECTS
I have coordinated several Italian and European research projects, mainly about information and about memory. I mention here just those related to the project.
- I served as Principal Investigator of the Horizon 2020 Marie Curie MSCA-RISE 2017 project (Grant agreement no. 778044) SPEME - Questioning Traumatic Heritage: Spaces of Memory in Europe, Argentina, Colombia, in collaboration with UBA, Buenos Aires (Argentina), Universidad Nacional de Bogotà (Colombia), University of Amsterdam (Netherlands), 530.000 eu. For 6 years (2017-2023) I was responsible for the research activities conducted by more than 40 researchers and heritage professionals in all the institutions involved in project. I was also in charge of coordinating around 100 secondments across the world. This research in Memory Studies helped me to pay attention to visuality in a transcultural context (as I focused on documentaries and museums) and to deepen the semiotic aspects of evidence. This issue has also been crucial in the coordination of a research group founded in 2022 in my Department, which focuses on the intertwining of Media and War, starting from the Ukraine case.
- I am currently the PI of a PRIN (projects funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research) about “Forgetfulness, between rights, duties and technological possibilities”, partnered with Dept of Legal Studies, Università Statale di Milano and Dept of ICT, Università del Piemonte Orientale
Among the past research projects where my actual interests are rooted, I coordinated:
-(2020-2021) a national research about “Le forme del falso/The modes of falsehood”, founded by International Studies Advanced School (ISA) of University of Bologna
-(2014-2015) the Italian unit of a project with Universidad Complutense de Madrid about “La construcción de los asuntos públicos en la esfera publica mediatizada. Analisi semio-etnografico de la información” (CSO2013-45726-R)” founded by Programa Estatal de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación Orientada a los Retos de la Sociedad, en el marco del Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2013-2016
MAJOR INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATIONS
Among the numerous collaborations with international academic institutions, I mention here those which involve me in regular exchange and collaborative activity:
- Princeton University, ref. prof. Federico Marcon: about Umberto Eco’s heritage and his semiotic legacy
- Université Paris 8, ref. Juan Alonso Almada: about semiotic theory, visual language and information
- Amsterdam, UVA, ref. Ihab Saloul: about memory studies and visual semiotics
- Tallinn University and Tartu University, School of Humanities (Estonia), about cultural semiotics and digital archiving
