Hyperpartisan Networks on Facebook. The Case of the Five Star Movement Network During the 2022 Italian Election

This paper aims to shed light on networks consisting of subjects that share similar opinions and worldviews. This is not a new phenomenon, but undoubtedly social media, thanks to the possibility of finding affinities with subjects who have shared interests, even if geographically distant, has facilitated the collaboration among networks of like-minded individuals. Several studies have shown that the tendency of people to interact with other people with similar values and points of view is widespread among populist networks, so, following this assumption, this work focuses on a specific network: that of the unofficial Facebook pages and groups close to the Five Star Movement. In this work, we looked at the activities of the unofficial Facebook pages and groups close to the 5SM and explored the main topics discussed and the dynamics of the discussion within the network during the last Italian general election. In particular, we focused on how Facebook pages and groups used Facebook native or external sources of information in generating content. This study, although still partly descriptive, helps to understand the information ecosystem of the 5SM network on Facebook and also offers useful insights into the role played on social media by partisan communities, with particular reference to the populist ones