Comunicare e gestire la crisi da COVID-19 in Italia e Giappone. Prospettive dall’analisi critica del discorso e dalla comunicazione di crisi

The use of rhetorical strategies and other linguistic devices in the context of institutional communication on COVID-19 has been the subject of attention by linguists and commentators worldwide. This study discusses the opportunity to integrate critical discourse analysis (CDA) with tools offered by crisis communication theory. In order to highlight the critical role of language in managing the crisis, this study presents a comparison between Italian and Japanese texts considered of primary importance for the initial phase of the COVID-19 crisis in the two countries. Although these countries adopted different approaches to deal with the emergency, the analysis shows that both Prime Ministers used similar linguistic devices in order to communicate and manage the crisis, which enabled them to reach their respective public governance goals.