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Berlusconi's Unrivalled Control of the Media and the Italian
Political Landscape
Beyond Berlusconi: The Corporate Italian Media's Portrayal
of the Antiwar Movement
Ukraine Political Crisis Deepens As Opposition Protests Grow
Green Party Leads Antiwar Movement in Italian Parliament
Leading Italian Progressive Luciana Castellina On the Italian
Left, the European Parliament and Bush's Reelection
Berlusconi's Unrivalled Control of the Media and
the Italian Political Landscape
As we broadcast from the Italian capital of Rome, we spend
the hour taking a look at politics and media in Italy. We
begin with Italian Senator Tana de Zulueta, a leading political
critic of Prime Minister Silvion Berlusconi who examines the
media mogul's influence over what the Italian public reads,
sees and hears.
Today we are broadcasting from the Italian capital of Rome
where we will spend the hour taking a look at politics and
the media in Italy.
Italy's conservative Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was
elected in 2001 after defeating the center-left coalition
which had ruled the country for five years. As Italy's richest
man, Berlusconi sits at the head of a vast media empire, giving
him unrivaled influence over what the Italian public sees,
reads and hears.
As well as owning three major commercial TV channels in Italy,
Berlusconi holds political influence at the board of the state-owned
TV broadcaster, RAI. He also owns a newspaper, Il Giornale,
and Italy's biggest publishing group, Mondadori.
This concentration of high public office and a privately-owned
media empire in the hands of one person is unique in Western
Europe. One journalist commented that Berlusconi's election
to Prime Minister spawned the "biggest conflict of interest
in any western democracy."
In addition to being the country's biggest media mogul, Berlusconi
is the first serving Italian prime minister ever to appear
in court and is currently standing trial on charges of bribery
and corruption.
- Tana de Zulueta, Italian senator on the Democratic left
and a leading political critic of Berlusconi. She is a former
reporter with the Sunday Times and the Economist.
Beyond Berlusconi: The Corporate Italian Media's
Portrayal of the Antiwar Movement
We look at the corporate Italian media outside of Prime
Minister Silvio Berlusconi's control and its portrayal of
the antiwar and anti-globalization movements in Italy. We
speak with independent Italian journalist Raffaele Mastrolonardo.
We continue to focus on issues of media concentration in
Italy and Prime Minister Berlusconi's influence over Italian
public opinion.
To look at the broader picture of the Italian corporate media's
coverage of Iraq and of the antiwar movement, we are joined
in our Rome studio by Italian journalist, Raffaele Mastrolonardo.
He is an independent journalist who writes on technology for
various Italian newspapers and web sites. He also collaborates
with several Italian and international magazines writing on
politics and media.
- Raffaele Mastrolonardo, independent Italian journalist.
Ukraine Political Crisis Deepens As Opposition Protests
Grow
The political crisis in Ukraine deepened last night after
the opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, declared himself
winner in Sunday's presidential run-off against Viktor Yanukovich.
We go to Kiev for a report from Independent reporter Askold
Krushelnycky.
The political crisis in Ukraine deepened last night after
the opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, declared himself
winner in Sunday's presidential run-off against Viktor Yanukovich.
Just before the program, we spoke with London Independent
reporter Askold Krushelnycky. He filed this report from the
streets of Kiev.
- Askold Krushelnycky, reporter wit the London Independent
speaking from Kiev.
Green Party Leads Antiwar Movement in Italian Parliament
We speak with Grazia Francescato, former president of the
Italian Green Party and spokesperson for the European Green
Party Federation about the antiwar movement, the European
Parliament and much more.
Italy is a close ally of the Bush administration and is a
member of the so-called "coalition of the wiling"
in Iraq. Prime minister Silvio Berlusconi sent some 3,000
Italian troops to Iraq where they remain deployed.
But Italy's participation in the invasion and occupation
of Baghdad comes amidst a massive antiwar movement throughout
the country. In the run-up to the invasion, up to 88% of Italians
were opposed to military intervention and millions took to
the streets in protest in an unprecedented display of unity
against war.
At times, the Italian government has responded harshly to
the large-scale popular participation in the anti-war, anti-globalization
movement. In July 2001, peaceful demonstrations against the
G8 summit in Genoa were met with police brutality. Italian
police shot and killed 23-year-old protester Carlo Giuliani.
The independent media center was raided leaving more than
60 people hospitalized. A total of 500 people were injured.
At the government level in Italy, the progressive Green Party
is one of the leading antiwar voices in parliament. Earlier
this year, Green parties from countries across the continent
joined forces to found the European Green Party. Working on
a common platform, Greens are now looking to increase their
influence in the European Parliament.
- Grazia Francescato, former president of the Italian Green
Party and spokesperson for the European Green Party Federation.
Leading Italian Progressive Luciana Castellina On
the Italian Left, the European Parliament and Bush's Reelection
We are joined in our Rome studio by one of Italy's leading
progressive figures: Luciana Castellina who discusses forming
the truly independent newspaper Il Manifesto, the significance
of the European parliament and the global effect of Bush's
reelection.
To wrap up today's transatlantic broadcast from Rome, we
are joined by one of Italy's leading progressive figures:
Luciana Castellina.
A well-known public intellectual in Italy, Luciana Castellina
has been a leading voice for change since the 1970s. After
leaving the leadership of the Communist Youth, Castellina
co-founded the political organization and daily newspaper,
"Il Manifesto." She has been elected to the Italian
and European parliaments several times and is active in Italy's
Environmental League and in the International Network for
Cultural Diversity. In the European Parliament, she presided
over the Committee on Culture and Media, and the Committee
for International Economic Relations. As president of Italia
Cinema, she promoted Italian films abroad. Castellina has
directed political reviews and published numerous books and
articles on social and economic issues. She is now president
of the No-War-TV co-operative.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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