Italy Media

The media in Italy is anything but impartial, and has been known to lambaste everyone from public officials to popular actresses. The most prevalent national daily papers are Il Corriere della Sera, a center-right publication based in Milan, and La Repubblica, a somewhat liberal paper based in Rome. Other popular papers include La Stampa (center-right, based in Turin), Il Messaggero (center-left, based in Rome), and Il Giornale (based in Milan and owned by ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s brother). Dailies like the pink La Gazzetta dello Sport and Il Corriere dello Sport are the true mainstays, covering soccer victories and losses, which cause more uproar than elections. For weekly entertainment listings, large cities have their own magazines, including Roma C’è; Firenze Spettacolo; and Qui Napoli. English-language Italian papers include Italy Daily, an insert in the International Herald Tribune, the monthly talk aBOut, and the weekly newsletter Wanted in Rome.

Television

Italian television offers three state-owned channels, RAI1, RAI2, and RAI3, and a handful of cable options from Italy and abroad. It is important to note, however, that everyone’s favorite ex-Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, owns all three of the RAI channels and is in control of three others. Television in Italy is a flashy affair. Whether they are game shows or the nightly news, Italian shows overwhelm viewers with disco balls, scantily-clad women, hit Europop songs, and general frivolity. In addition to its domestic sensational spectacles, Italian TV also incorporates international flair in its programming. The evening news reports on domestic and international issues, dubbed re-runs of American shows figure prominently, and bad 80s movies play late into the night.