Italy. Ever more threats to journalists. Interpellation to the Government by 6 senators

The number has doubled in a year, they say, citing data from Ossigeno and the Ministry of the Interior. What is the government doing?

OSSIGENO – November 3rd  2020 – Six senators of the Italian 5 Star Movement addressed a written question to the President of the Council of Ministers, Giuseppe Conte and the ministers of Justice, Alfonso Bonafede, and of the Interior, Luciana Lamorgese, on the recent increase in acts of intimidation and threats against Italian journalists in the exercise of their activity. Read here the full text of question no. 4-04357.

Senators Elio Lannutti (first signatory), Trentacoste, Corrado, Presutto, Pavanelli, and Giannuzzi cite the monitoring data of Ossigeno per l’Informazione and the surveys of the Ministry of the Interior according to which in 2020 the number of threats to and intimidation of journalists is more than doubled. Given that, they are asking the Government:

1) what initiatives and what tools it intends to put in place to combat the phenomenon of threatened journalists?

2) what initiatives it intends to take to prevent the climate of intolerance towards media workers due to the excessive and unjustified use of a language of hatred that not only endangers journalists, but freedom of information itself? 

3) what initiatives it intends to take to try to stem the distorted use of legal means, used for the sole purpose of intimidating and therefore silencing journalists? 

4) does the government perceive a need to intervene to ensure better conditions of economic security and professional dignity for media workers helping also to regulate the contractual situation of the freelance journalist?

ASP / wt