“Make her drink some acid ”, write some football fans on the Facebook chat

Journalists Chiara Ciurlia, during the live broadcast of “Tutti in conferenza” (Everybody in discussion) was trying to stop a wave of vulgar and offensive comments from the participants. The comment of Ossigeno.

OSSIGENO March 9th 2022 – On January 20th 2022 some football fans who followed the streaming broadcast “Tutti in conferenza” insulted the moderator Chiara Ciurlia in the Facebook Chat, writing: “Shut her mouth”, “I hope she stops talking”, “Get her to drink some acid” and other threatening and offensive phrases peppered with sexist references.

THE FACT – Chiara Ciurlia was moderating the broadcast of the website illeccese.it, dedicated to the Roma-Lecce football match which had just finished. Some users had begun to insult other participants on the Chat who were defending the opposing team’s fans. Chiara Ciurlia asked them not to make vulgar and offensive comments and she herself then became the target of sexist threats and insults. She is now considering whether to make a formal complaint against those who threatened her.

THE PRESENTER – “I have received more and more heinous insults, up to including threats of scarring me with acid. I asked my editor – Chiara Ciurlia told Ossigeno – to intervene and he blocked the Chat. I am deeply disappointed by the behaviour of these individuals who I do not want to define as fans. I would like to be able to meet them to tell them that behind the professional they insulted there is a human being, there is her family, and there are loved ones who suffer. In order to protect these loved ones I decided not to release any other comments but I made this exception for Ossigeno due to the role it plays. I am discussing with my lawyer what to do. I hope that what has happened to me will also be useful for others to defend themselves against these attacks. I think that in these cases we need to react and denounce them. We should not endure these intimidations in silence. “

SUPPORT – Ossigeno per l’Informazione expressed solidarity with Chiara Ciurlia and encouraged her to demand that the perpetrators of the insults and threats be identified and tried for behaviour that, in addition to being tasteless, constitutes a crime. It is even more serious because it was directed against a woman insulting her as a woman. Insulting those who are conscientiously committed to maintaining an exchange of views in the context of mutual respect is a violation of the ethics of communication to which everyone should subscribe. Systematically denouncing these incidents and aligning oneself with those who are victims of them is the first step to take to put an end to the impunity of those who commit these violations.

GB