“Meloni wants all the media power in Italy”. From Rai to Agi, this is how the premier ends up on El Pais

“Meloni wants media power in Italy”. With this title the prime minister ends up in the Spanish newspaper El Pais. The article signed by Daniel Verdu explains and reconstructs the strategy used to control the means of communication to “monopolize all possible space”. The Italian Prime Minister “has taken note of this”, writes El Pais in the edition of Saturday 6 April, “first of all ensuring absolute control of the public media through important changes to Rai”. And commenting that “never before has a government had the almost unanimous support of the three main networks (Rai1, Rai2 and Rai3)”. Also involving Mediaset “the media empire of the same family that for years has financed the party with which it forms a government coalition: Berlusconi-Forza Italia. Company, also, where the daughter’s father, the journalist, works Andrea Giambruno”. Without neglecting the hot issue of the moment: “the acquisition by Antonio Angeluccientrepreneur and deputy of the League, of the second press agency in the country, with a strange operation”, we read again.

Melons and the press

The Spanish news daily describes the Italian situation. With the prime minister Melons, “belligerent with the critical press”, which “is now moving towards a concentration of related newspapers, televisions and radios which will probably culminate with the sale of the Agi agency in the next few days. The case hurts opposition ranks in Parliament, because the agency is currently owned by Eni, the state-controlled energy company with a 35% stake. That is, the Ministry of Economy is the majority shareholder of the company, which must decide on the sale of a fundamental piece of Italian information to a deputy of the League who has already more than demonstrated his closeness to Meloni in his media reports”. The reference is to Antonio Angeluccinewspaper publisher Il Tempo, Libero and Il Giornale (“all three devoted to the current prime minister”, writes the reporter Verdú), ras of the Roman clinics and richest member of Parliament who – as the Spanish journalist specifies – “through an assistant, refused to speak to us” . Remembering the headline from a few months ago on Meloni “The man of the year” which he had caused discussion with a photo of the leader of the Brothers of Italy which occupied the entire cover of the newspaper.

The history of Agi

After having told and described Agi, founded in 1950 by the then president of Eni, Enrico Matteinow with offices in various countries around the world and a staff of 73 journalists who are protesting in the streets against the sale to Angelucci, El Pais is making people talk Massimo Maugeri, former correspondent of Agi Brussels, who explains the concerns of the editorial team, from possible dismissals to the fears of ending up “in the hands of a right-wing editorial group owned by a member of the government majority. A free and plural light will go out. And it happens at a time when the government has already done everything with Rai, Mediaset”, explains Maugeri.

The opposition

El Pais has been reporting on opposition protests that have been opposing the operation since January. Reporting the words of the Democratic Party deputy Peppe Provenzano (“It would be a state scandal”) of the former colleague Michele Anzaldi (“Angelucci is a parliamentarian and Agi is controlled by a parastatal company. In fact, the decision on the sale is the Minister of Economy Giorgetti, who is from the same party as him. Buying an agency is a big business and must be done with great transparency”).