Bottom-Up Welfare Information Ecosystem on TikTok: An Exploratory Analysis of Service Disclosure and User Experiences About Anti-Poverty Policies

Since 2021, the Italian welfare system has undergone accelerated digitalization and platformization, driven by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. New digital platforms and procedures, such as SIISL, ADI, NASPI, DIS-COLL, and GOL, have been introduced to manage access to employment services and anti-poverty measures. While these reforms aim to improve efficiency and inclusion, they also intersect with a stratified digital divide involving access, skills, trust, and cultural capital. Using exploratory digital ethnography on TikTok, the study analyzes bottom-up narratives and user-generated content related to welfare access and labor policies. The findings reveal an emerging informal informational ecosystem in which professionals, influencers, and citizens act as intermediaries, contributing to a form of bottom-up governance of digital welfare.