The lecture aims to reflect on how gender relationships and femininity are represented, depicted, and performed in contemporary Italy. Such a reflection is linked to the peculiarity of the Italian mediascape from a political and cultural viewpoint, and has direct consequences on political life and women’s movements. In this respect, the talk offers an overview of Italian society through the lens of gender and resistance to the influence of the media in monopolizing the evolution of women’s representations and identity in the country. From another perspective, this Italian viewpoint is framed and contextualized against the backdrop of the EU, as a driving force of change and a site of both quantitative and qualitative comparison for gender representation, equality, and domestic violence. A reception in honor of Visiting Italian Fulbright will be held immediately after the lecture. Light refreshments will be served.