The strike, planned for May 6, follows last week’s riot surrounding a performance by Antonio Scurati, writer of a novel cycle about the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. His participation in a talk show was canceled at the last minute. He would read a monologue on the occasion of April 25, the day on which Italy celebrates its liberation from fascism. In this text he criticized Meloni’s party Fratelli d’Italia for not distancing itself from its ‘post-fascist past’.
The Fratelli come from fascism, but Meloni says he abhors all forms of totalitarianism. According to Scurati, “it distances itself from the regime’s indefensible acts of violence (the persecution of Jews) without ever rejecting the fascist experience as a whole.”
Both Meloni and Rai denied that Scurati was canceled for political reasons. To illustrate this, Meloni published his monologue on her own Facebook page. According to the Rai, Scurati’s performance was canceled for ‘economic and contractual’ reasons, including his fee of 1,800 euros.
Political interference with the Rai has a long tradition. The state broadcaster is at the heart of the Italian patronage system. Governments of the left and right have always appointed loyal supporters to top positions. The Rai board is appointed by the government and parliament. Proposals to make the Rai independent have always failed.
Since Meloni took office as prime minister in 2022, several directors and presenters have left the broadcaster due to government interference. After the Scurati affair, the journalists’ union said that the control of government-appointed management “is becoming more suffocating by the day.”
Tags: Journalists Italian state broadcaster Rai strike suffocating government control
