"When I saw them at the theatre, I never imaged I'd be one of them." "Then it just happened." "I am a buffoon." "caused a terrible uproar." "Demonstrations, insults, protests." "to someone in my field." "wasn't only for me." "who allowed him to go so far." "overwhelming power over the media." "But less than a year later, he delivered his "Sofia Edict"..." "The use that Biagi... ..the other guy ?" "Santoro... okay, but the other one ?" "..and Luttazzi have made of public television, paid for with public money, is criminal." "You work for a public service !" "Control yourself, Santoro !" "Right, I work for a public service, not for you, Berlusconi." "I've been inviting Berlusconi on the show for two months, but he won't come." "I've even written letters but he won't reply." "It's a pity, because my first question would be about his past." "I'd ask him: "Berlusconi, where did you get your money ?"" "Because no one knows." "But luckily, this book has just come out:" "it's called "The Scent of Money" and sheds light on this mystery." "Tonight's guest is the author," "Marco Travaglio." "I think the new administration has the duty of preventing this from happening again." "After the Travaglio interview, four lawsuits were filed:" "one by Silvio Berlusconi for 20 billion, one by his party, Forza Italia, for 1 1 , and his two corporations, Fininvest, for 5 and Mediaset, also for 5." "A total of 41 billion." "I've been trying to go back to work for over two years." "I've done everything humanly possible." "I've been through every court in Italy and even been proved right." "A magistrate has requested that I be reinstated in my job." "I haven't heard from anyone since." "Mr. Saccà sent the letter that terminated my contract with advice of delivery, which is the thing I find most offensive." "I was fired by advice of delivery !" "So I wouldn't be able to say no one told me !" "To make sure I really knew I was fired." " l, on behalf of my electors..." " You're only one person !" "Yes, our coalition, Casa delle Libertà !" "We believe it's a matter of freedom to not have to hear someone compare us to the Mafia, or Berlusconi to Mussolini, on public TV." "Biagi did a show in which I was present, so I can tell you I heard him compare" "Berlusconi to Mussolini." "That cannot happen, it's a matter of freedom." "Why can't it happen ?" "Why can't someone compare Berlusconi to Mussolini ?" "Why can't someone compare... at 8:30 p.m. or 12:30 p.m., or 6:30 p.m. or midnight..." "Berlusconi to Mussolini ?" "a Berlusconi employee." "Enzo Biagi, the most popular journalist in Italy," "for more than 40 years," "the end of fascism and Nazism," "from Berlusconi's press office." "allowed now are like this... ls Kerry's defeat and Bush's victory a lesson for the Left ?" "God willing..." "are full of recipes." "In Italy, the production of olive oil is very important, even in Lazio." "Oven-baked pasta, a classic Italian family recipe." "From starter to dessert:" "foie gras." "with 90% of the in-depth analysis of the news." "The Virgin Mary crying blood is quite shocking as it is." "When did your daughter first see the Virgin Mary ?" " The 2nd of February." " The day the statue of Mary cried ?" "You mean the tears ?" "No, the statue crying is one thing, the vision of the Holy Virgin is another." "Isn't this whole thing surprising ?" "No, because... ..it goes along with the other things that are happening." "is it serious ?" "What does it mean ?" "It means that... ..there's no real opposition... I don't mean regarding the basic ideals, I mean daily life, the protection of our citizens, the freedom of the people." "So why didn't the previous centre-left government" "from Berlusconi's overwhelming power over the media ?" "for an explanation, why did they always seem annoyed ?" "This has been said at least 100 times now." "As in all of human behaviour, mistakes happen." "A law like that would have looked like" "He'd just lost the 1996 election and his coalition was saying that Berlusconi was washed up and they wanted to bet on another horse." "At that stage, to attack him with a law on conflict of interest, would have been a risk... not worth running." "It was a mistake." "were devastating to our country." "with Silvio Berlusconi's dilemmas." "the organization of those protests." "to mass mobilization." "is the notorious Gasparri law." "It guarantees Berlusconi's right to keep his monopoly of Italian TV," "of future gain and expansion." "So when Paolo Ruffini, the general manager of rai 3," "a list the majority felt cozy with," "to do a new satire show," "episode to the Gasparri law." "And to make it known I wouldn't go along with the current trend, I called it "RAlot"." "Four days before it was to air, a press conference took place." "his satisfaction of "RAlot"." "I'm especially pleased with this show." "It explores satire with intelligence and innovation." "The writing skill is really exceptional here." "But the same person, a few hours before transmission, called and said he'd decided to cancel the show." "We went into this little room and he asked me if I wanted to sit down !" "And then he said:" ""They've cancelled the show."" "I thought it was a joke." "He said that the political climate... probably wasn't appropriate... it wasn't right, it was too risky... I was extremely perplexed." "to protest this injustice." "and the first episode was aired." "Ladies and gentlemen, good evening !" "as to say if it's my turn to kick the bucket, I'm ready." "You know that Italy is ranked 53rd worldwide for freedom of information." "53rd out of 166 countries." "Has anyone mentioned that on TV ?" "Was it on the news ?" "No." "If it had been, we wouldn't be in 53rd position." "Minister Gasparri, many say your law legitimises the existing monopolies instead of solving problems." "It's beneficial to Berlusconi's corporation, Mediaset." "That's paranoia." "There was always someone at school who got straight F's and said the teacher had it in for him." "People always find controversy." "I must not have explained myself..." "Many people criticize your "sic", integrated communication system." "Let's use Coca-Cola as an example." "Coca-Cola has a dominant position among carbonated drinks." "So does orange soda." "Orange soda isn't in a dominant position." "To stop Coca-Cola from being dominant, I extend the definition "drink" to all liquids like whiskey, river water, sea water and ocean water." "Then I say:" ""Look at all the water in the world !"" "Coca-Cola is no longer the dominant liquid." "But that's a trick." "But it's also a shame." "I like Coca-Cola as it is." "I don't want river or sea or ocean water in it." "Coke is good as it is." "Why add other things to it ?" "A message to all channels." "While travelling and meeting many other important people throughout the global world," "I've been told that in Italy, mass media is in the hands of a single person." "I want you to know, we're looking and we will find him." "The public was enthusiastic, viewing figures skyrocketed." "was ever aired." "RaiOT SHUT DOWN, it'S WAR" "SABlNA HAS BEEN CANCELLED" "in the year 2000 ?" "of our constitution," "of Human Rights." "despite the people's protests ?" "Here's a practical example of conflict of interest." "to cancel the programme." "Mediaset, Berlusconi's corporation," "a million euro lawsuit." "ral's government-appointed managers  even before reading the lawsuit," "from damages." "an executive officer, Cattaneo, with ties to a post-fascist party" "the Berlusconi family," "Berlusconi's administration" "the majority felt cozy with..." "Every member of the Board, including the president, Annunziata," ""RAlot" forever." "Why didn't you say you can't cancel the show ?" "This is a democracy." "But we also had to find a way..." "You would have been cancelled..." " Why ?" " Because it was four against one." "But there's no legal basis !" "You made me look cross-eyed, speak dialect and count for fuck-all." "Your opinion of me isn't going to change !" "So, I haven't made myself clear !" "As president of rai it's my duty to say:" "no more satire unless it's rigorously fenced in." "I'm president and I was chosen by both the Left and the Right." "I don't count for anything but I see fences clearly." "We need fences, they must be established intuitively." "I studied a long time in America and there's a professional who establishes fences, the Double Watcher." "Sadly, in Italy, we have to get by using intuition." "But we can do it." "One's freedom ends where the freedom of others starts." "There are about five billion others." "With one fence per person, that means five billion fences." "If you can't establish them, it means you don't have the sensitivity to work in a public office." "The American language has a lovely word for fence: "Guantanamo"." "brought to parliament, to the Watchdog Commission, over which Berlusconi has a huge majority." "As far as "RAlot" is concerned, there was no censorship because there was no satire." "What we saw on RAl 3 was a long series of insults to the prime minister, to the majority that supports him in parliament, and the companies he's set up." "Therefore, it's rai's duty to safeguard itself from the legal consequences of what it airs." "Guzzanti was wrong to stage a political rally and not the satire for which she was paid." "She's an actress." "Guzzanti should be satisfied just being a clown, an actress." "If she wants to change jobs and join parliament, there's plenty of room." "And I must say that the average intelligence of Italian MPs is such that she would undoubtedly be a great success." "Maybe that should be off the record." "Too late." "to prevent such an abuse of power ?" "the Watchdog Commission." "He could go with his commission to the Italian President, Ciampi, and the leaders of the Chambers and say "A law has been broken." "Something must be done."" "But Petruccioli," "felt cozy with, did nothing." "That's not true." "Many things happened with "RAlot"." "We intervened and forced the executives and Board of Directors... to publicly deal with the problem." "The problem is much more general." "I would call it a misinterpretation of satire in Italy." "News isn't meant to be reported by jokers, but by reporters." "And if reporters fail to do it correctly and thoroughly, we can't just put comedians on TV to do it." "That's the problem we have to face if we want to work out this matter." "Petruccioli's opinion is included in Mediaset's court case" "from the major Italian newspapers." ""Censuring satire is inconceivable, but 'RAlot' isn't satire."" "According to Mediaset's attorneys," "appear more human," "relieve social tensions." "to contribute to public opinion." "This means that "satire mustn't and cannot make people think"." "I was told:" ""There's a difference between satire and making fun." "People often get confused between what satire is and simply making fun of someone." "Making fun of someone is ridiculing their mishaps." "For example, someone tripping, an old lady falling, messing up words, someone eating too much, someone grabbing a girl's bum, someone being obnoxious, etc." "What isn't satire, is making fun."" "What's the criteria for saying something's not satire ?" "You can't just say it's insulting." "Well, it has to be funny." " lt was very funny." " lf it makes you cry..." " Satire can be bitter too." " At least make one smile." "It did." "At least include something humorous !" " lt was !" " Yes, it was !" "But what's your point ?" "News reporters must accept the rules of reporting." "Satirists must accept the rules of satire." "What are these "rules of satire" ?" "It's not a matter of rules, it's the kind of show you did." "Why are you talking about rules ?" "Dario Fo says it's satire, everyone says it's satire, satirists and professors who teach it say it is." "Satire without information doesn't make sense." "You can't have political satire without presenting facts." "Aristophanes incorporated political rallies in his comedies." "And they were called "parabases"." "The best of the chorus was the "choryphaeus"" "and he'd step away from the chorus, get in the front row so everyone could see and say: "l now talk to the city"." "He'd say anything he wanted about war or politics." "Satire must touch the tragic situations in a person's life." "It has to be about politics." "All important plays from Shakespeare to Marlowe are full of situations dealing with politics." "Yet I've been prevented from doing it so many times." "I was told to act like an artist, an actor..." "Don't bother meddling in..." ""Let politicians do politics, you stick to making us laugh !"" "I started doing TV sketches on a popular French TV show called "Nul Par Ailleurs"." "I did political sketches, not journalism." "Seven or eight years later, I got tired of just sketches." "Since it was pure entertainment, the public didn't get the reasons behind my sketches, the real meaning of my work." "So I talked to the programmers at Canal+ and suggested a news programme that would provide the news through reporting as well as sketches." "In one of these sketches, we killed President Chirac." "It was a parody of Tarantino's film "Pulp Fiction"." "We called it "Peuple Fiction", People Fiction." "The people wanted to know what happened to Chirac's promises." "See ?" "It went off by itself." "Why have you screwed with us ?" "Why have you fucked over your people ?" "Look..." "Have you read the "Bible" ?" ""l will fight social injustice so our nation shall prosper." "If I fail, the sovereign people... ..shall inflict their punishment !"" "Yes, I said that." ""France For All", Page 3, Line 14." "The skill lies in accepting excess." "If you say: "You can go this far, but no further", that's negotiating but then it's not satire anymore." "Satire might upset you it might be controversial," "but it relies on the maturity and the intellectual capacity of its intended public." "The most popular shows in France right now are the satirical ones and that's the case throughout Europe." "Politics are looked down on so much that satire works great." "There's one show that makes fun of Chirac in a very harsh way." "His character is ridiculous and an impulsive liar." "A populist, a very non-serious person." "This goes on in France every evening." "When democracy is afraid of caricature, fears criticism and fears being laughed at, it is that democracy that has problems." "A democracy that's strong and self-confident, fair and honest, isn't afraid of being laughed at." "It says: "You're right, I messed up."" "guignollaboratory." "Organizers, dubbers, puppeteers, make-up artists and writers." "It is a satirist's paradise." "There's a caricature of everyone, with no boundaries whatsoever." "Even Berlusconi is here." "very attentively." "One man has power, media and business." "is that right ?" "Can you talk about it or not ?" "Not according to Berlusconi." "According to the Left, you can, but comedians can't." "So who's going to talk about it ?" "No one." "All that matters is Berlusconi's opinion." "People mock power in France, no matter who it is." "But that's non-existent in Italy." "In Italy the main trend of the press and political commentators is to fear the powerful, and to show reverence no matter who they are, left or right-winged, Berlusconi or D'Alema." "You said no more satire against the royal family." "I said satire is okay because freedom of opinion is allowed." "As long as it's performed with taste." "he said it offended the queen," "by every newspaper." "yet another sketch being inspired." "Every week we enjoy watching yours as well as other satirical programmes." "There's only one problem." "It's too polite, not harsh enough and too politically correct." "react to our situation ?" "a lot of space to it, hundreds of articles were printed." "the problem wasn't censorship, it was the programme." "I expected Santoro, Biagi, Luttazzi and Guzzanti's getting fired would result in a revolt of rai journalists." "interventions, television strikes..." "But none of that happened." "Maybe since at first... no "phone calls" are being made, it looks like everyone... is against censorship." "But the people up high have the ability... to make a few phone calls as long as it's all done in 24-36 hours." "It's always that way..." "a few calls come in and then the diversionary tactics start." "The diversionary tactic this time was:" ""lt was obscene, smut..."" "LET'S NOT SAY censorship TO something OF BAD TASTE" ""lt's not humour, it's journalism."" "Then controversy grows and the facts get altered." "It's easier to see now as you look back at the series of events that occurred." "We should have considered the event as a whole instead of focussing on one aspect or another of the programme." "When the press feels that a certain thing isn't worth the fight for politicians they end up letting it go, even when... they react positively at first, like in this case." "censorship was seen by the public." "delusions OF GRANDEUR ideological killing" "public LlTTERER" "TAKE YOUR PAYCHECK AND SHUT UP" "MADWOMAN" "MARTYR JACK-OFF sessions" "Even the "Riformista"  and it's supposed to be a left-winged paper." "They said: "A hysterical soliloquy against the PM."" ""Good thing it was cancelled, public TV isn't Hyde Park Corner" "voice their opinion."" ""lt was political propaganda just dying to get censored."" "CRAP" "The point is this... I'm against mixing news and satire, actually I'm against... substituting one for the other due to the particular abnormality of Italian media." "You can't say that since Italian TV news is ridiculous, comedians can broadcast the news." "I'm not saying that the problem with news on TV is "RAlot"" "or Sabina Guzzanti, I'm not saying that." "I'm saying that RAlot is not the solution to the problem." "But they cancelled it anyway." "You said it wasn't censorship so they had a right to cancel it ?" "That's what amazes me." "Not the right to cancel it, just not air it." "but then I started a tour." "some good news came in." "It wasn't going to take years to find out who won." "Berlusconi's lawsuit was unfounded." ""There was no defamation because" "can make use of sarcasm." "In addition, everything that was said was basically true."" "The problem is that according to our constitution, monopolies cannot exist." "No one is allowed to control such a large amount of mass media or advertising resources." "Then how did Berlusconi manage to do that ?" "His political connections and especially his friendship with Craxi." "Because of these political connections," "Berlusconi enjoyed unlimited credit from banks and the market went crazy." "He bought "Thorn Birds" for an unbelievable amount of money and no one said a word." "And his membership in the Masonic lodge P2 was a great advantage to Berlusconi because a lot of men in key positions at major Italian banks, belonged to the Masonic lodge run-amok, P2." "Even Tax Police generals belonged to P2, the ones who were supposed to do tax inspections." "Not all of them, obviously, but many of them." "This brief introduction may help answer the question:" ""How could Silvio Berlusconi be so good at his business matters but be so untalented when dealing with our issues ?"" "The answer is that he isn't really a self-made man." "It has little to do with his business capacities..." "So..." "that were said are true ?" "If what was said were true ?" "implicitly... what... can we deduce from that ?" "That our parliament is full of previous offenders ?" "What can we deduce from this ?" "That our prime minister uses his position for personal wealth ?" "If these horrible things were true, then our leaders who allow and have allowed him to do that... what kind of leaders are they ?" "Leaders who we should kick out immediately !" "And if their intentions were good, why then after the case was dropped, why didn't the "censors" let us back on ?" "Good morning, can we interview you ?" "If you'd asked me 5 minutes ago..." " 3 minutes ?" " 5 minutes ago I'd have said yes." "Good morning, can we interview you please ?" "We're conducting an inquiry about "RAlot"." " We wanted your opinion." " No opinion." "So you can't say I'm not giving you a chance..." " ..to justify your actions." " l'm busy." "Excuse me, can we ask you a few questions about "RAlot" ?" "Seeing as the show was cancelled because of legal problems and that the case was dismissed, do you think I could go back on air ?" "Do you realise that you've violated article 21 of the Constitution that says everyone has the right to free expression, and that you made up an excuse to cancel the show ?" "Your position is very interesting." "I'm not sure whether I agree on everything you say but there must be something." "If it got cancelled, there must be a reason." "What ?" "I think it was just an excuse." " The Mediaset lawsuit..." " You think they were excuses !" "The executives and Board evaluated the situation and found the show damaging to the station's interests." " That's why it was closed." " But the lawsuit was unfounded." "People should evaluate the grounds of their case first." "Or I could just sue any programme and you'd shut it down, but you can't." "There were even some papers, not right-winged ones, that emphasized:" ""ral must defend itself if they're sued." "They wanted billions, RAl can't take such a big risk."" ""Let's wait and let the courts make a decision first."" " l read that." " lt's insane, isn't it ?" "It's outrageous because you should make decisions based on facts, not probabilities." "Otherwise the risk of blackmail would halt all forms of expression." "If you make comments on things you got from papers, but they don't want you to talk about it, they sue you for billions." "Therefore you can never mention it again and you're dragged into a long case involving, time, money, etc..." "One can conclude then that currently in Italy they're admitting that corporations have gagged mass media." " Have you been sued ?" " Yes." "It was just to scare me or... they would have sued the paper too." "But it doesn't explain why one person was picked on out of a larger context." "Usually the case is made against the paper who published it but they only sued me so I assume it was just a threat which I can deal with in my work." " You're used to it ?" " Yes." "Agnes wanted 10 million euros..." " 29." " 29 million euros ?" "Yes, because of the pay number issue." "And Telecom wanted billions." "This time we're talking about 500,000 euros." "Cut it down just a little and I'll pay... gladly... since I can afford to do it a couple times a year." "At least I write about the things you should." " So it's our fault ?" " A little." "You're avoiding the responsibility." "So we have to join Alex Zanotelli, Luigi Ciotti and a few rock singers because they're the only ones who talk about facts anymore." "There's no point in writing for the Corriere, they won't publish it." "It's happened at least 10 times, I get angry on your behalf." "They send you out on a job, you wait in lines..." "You take notes and they only publish a few words of what you wrote." " Maybe." " You should get angry !" "Who said I don't ?" "But..." "You should rebel !" "If what I said was true," "on a satire show ?" "that Italian news is a farce." "The surprise." "Good evening." "Can we hear a duet between Apicella and Berlusconi ?" "Let's do a world premiere, something never done before like "Jealousy"." "Did you write the lyrics ?" "This song is dedicated to my wife." "Let's put the mike here, or the sound will be distorted." "Move the mike away, I have to teach you everything !" "I just can't describe Bruno Vespa's "Porta a Porta"." "My paper asked me to do a piece on TV programmes and freedom of the press." "I just can't describe "Porta a Porta"" "to the French public." "There's no equivalent." "There is no single figure who manages so much of the media, so much real power..." "not virtual power !" "That doesn't exist so I've never been able to write about it." "For me, TV journalism doesn't mean talking about cheese or giving the microphone to whoever's in power at the moment." "Journalism is independent, it means asking questions." "And, above all, following up on them." "A politician from the Left or the Right can talk rubbish but the second question is crucial because it exposes him." "It exposes him !" "Italian journalists today have a huge responsibility but they often end up being cowards." "It's sad to say, but this way of keeping a low profile, of not getting to the bottom of things and not making a decision... makes journalism in Italy as despicable a profession as politics is." "Hello, Minister." "Can we talk for a minute ?" "It's the one year anniversary since "RAlot" was axed." "The judge threw the case out and what we said was true, so why can't we go back on the air ?" "The show being suspended didn't depend on me." "I think you said questionable things but there was no face-to-face discussion." "It was satire, that isn't required." "This is a serious matter." "Satire is one thing, debate is another." "And that was satire." " lt's like that in every country." " No, it isn't." "You mentioned this law without letting anyone stick up for it." "That was your choice, so it's a matter of being fair." "A law the President did not sign !" "It was approved by parliament then signed by him." "The law I mentioned was found unconstitutional..." " ..and wasn't signed." " Not because of the reasons you gave." "Turn off the cameras..." "Okay, it's true." "I didn't write or even read my law." "I just can't !" "I start reading it at night and fall asleep !" " You pass out." " Yes !" "It's crazy !" " Can you do me a favour ?" " Of course." "Could you write a summary, or Cliff Notes of my law ?" "Just like twenty pages so I know what it says." "And while you're at it... since some of your questions put me on the spot, write down some hard questions and the answers too, okay ?" "Like: "People say someone from Mediaset wrote the law" ?" "Exactly..." "I wouldn't know what to say !" " lt would put you on the spot ?" " Like totally !" "I'd have to say:" ""Mediaset..." "like what's that ?"" "People don't want to hear insults and gratuitous spite." "But viewing figures were high, people liked it." "People don't want to hear..." "The camera's not on me anymore, so..." " Here it is." " l was waiting for it to come back." "The public doesn't want to hear..." "But people do, there's no doubt." "Satire can't be insulting." "People want that, you can't deny it." "It's you lot who don't." "The public liked it." "No, I don't think people want to see vulgar and coarse satire." "Have you asked the public ?" "Because people protested." "Thousands of people." "Look, I'm a colleague of your father's and he's from the Centre-Right." "You asked to cancel it, not the public." "I discussed it with your father, who's a Centre-Right senator." "I'm an adult, I don't ask my father's permission." "No, but since he's a senator... one might want to consult him too." " What's your point ?" " My point is... we all represent our electorate." "The electorate didn't elect you to cancel TV shows you don't like and to monopolize the media." " They wouldn't have voted for you." " Of course !" "But that's what you've done." "Santoro, Biagi, Luttazzi, me, Tagliafico... anyone who has a different opinion than you !" "Those who can't express themselves in TV, like me, are in parliament or somewhere else saying what there's no point in saying on TV." "Why is there no point ?" "Who says you can't express yourself on TV ?" "Lilli Gruber, Santoro and the others you've mentioned, all use TV as a means of breaking into politics." "I was politically active outside parliament for 20 years so you can do the same." "But I'm not active in a party, I'm fighting for people to know what laws our parliament passes." "I'm fighting so people can exercise their right to criticise." "I want to exercise my right to criticize on TV." "People have a right to express other opinions on TV, don't they ?" "And I want to exercise my right to criticize saying..." "You don't criticize, you cancel shows." "..that I don't agree with your idea of what satire is." "That isn't satire, it's gratuitous vulgarity." " Name one vulgar thing." " Forget it." "I won't forget it." ""Vulgar" is not an appropriate term." "Can you guarantee that everything I say will go on the programme ?" "If you say something interesting." "Go ahead." "We haven't finished." "Tell me something." "Haven't you found anything worth including ?" "Goodbye and good luck." "Good luck to all us Italians under the fascist regime." "See you when you get your show back and I can criticize it again." "How will I get it back when you've thrown us all out ?" "As soon as possible, because I like criticizing it." "But you cancelled my show, you didn't criticize it." "You cancelled the show." "It didn't work out for you !" "It wasn't a coming into office, it was a seizing of power." "I always wrote in my editorials that in this sense, their concept is revolutionary." "Technically." "Revolutionary in the "Thatcherist" or "Reaganist" meaning of the word." "Or even more..." "the beginning of a new era." "This man is the prime minister of Italy." "It's all mine:" "Italian TV, newspapers... I pass the laws I want, everything..." "Of course I am a fascist." "So what ?" "Fascism is good !" "Fuck everyone !" "Such a catastrophe could even happen here in France." "We had the habit in our house to bind the newspapers according to year." "When I was little I'd climb my father's bookshelf and get these big books of newspapers down." "I used to wonder why they didn't understand." "At first there were so many people who later became anti-fascist and even joined the Resistance, who took part..." "They'd say very weak things like:" ""Despite everything, Italy is still democratic", etc..." "And that is how I realized how fascism came to be." "Going through all the pages of these newspapers, I saw the rise of fascism as a comic strip." "Each volume got more and more fascist." "And so on." "And at the final issue of that year, it was full-blown fascism." "lL DUCE FOUNDS AN empire" "Back then, persuasion meant intimidating, physically scaring." "Now persuasion is intimidating and psychologically scaring until you realize your career is on the line, along with your future, the jobs you might have." "You see people who get rewarded while you're left behind so you decide to jump on the bandwagon." "of expression in Italy." ""Freedom House", an important international observer," "for freedom of expression," "and African countries." "a partly free country in 2004." "A regime wins points when the opposition keeps quiet." "They think that by keeping quiet and putting up with minor violations of a democracy... I don't mean deportations or assassinations, but instances of censorship and aggression towards individuals." "Believing that being the opposition means complaining too much..." ""Lowering your tone", etc." "This strengthens the regime and its power of impunity." "That is historical experience." "Can we list some cases of censorship you included in your book ?" "We all know the personal cases." "They chose a few to teach everyone a lesson." "Like Biagi, Santoro, Luttazzi, Freccero," "Sabina Guzzanti and Paolo Rossi." " More money !" " Money !" "Money !" "More and more money !" "I took this farce of Molière's and adapted it to our situation." "I'm one of you, so don't forget it." "Someone who used to be where you are now and who's now where you'll never be !" "I'm here, but especially..." "We had 1 .2 million viewers at 1 a.m. on the first night." "The next day the Italian Associated Press called asking why it was interrupted after the first act." "I called RAl but no one seemed to know why." "In the first press release, they said it was blasphemous and in the second, that my words were too harsh." "We believe in freedom in all its multiple and vital forms." "Even taking away freedoms is a form of freedom." "For the first time, I decided to break the cycle of censor censuring and the censured complaining and refuse to let the thing die." "So I decided to file a lawsuit." "Ferruccio De Bortoli is a perfect example in the world of press." "They established a precedent." "They can fire the editor-in-chief of a newspaper, even if they don't own it." "I gave up the editorship of "Corriere della Sera" a year ago." "It was a completely personal decision." "It's no secret that I had problems with the prime minister and it's no secret that his lawyers are persisting with various lawsuits." "I must say that I find this to be rather significant of a pathology in the system." "Unfortunately in Italy, the phenomenon exists of "who doesn't agree with me, is the enemy, therefore allied with those who are against me."" "You can't have professionals who are allowed to perform their job fairly, sometimes bravely." "We've lost the "Corriere"" "and Italian democracy has lost its most important newspaper." "The newspaper is lost." "The new editor-in-chief is honest and respectable, but he is not like my friend, ex-editor De Bortoli." "It's a scandal that they fired Biagi..." "..and Santoro." "Excuse me." "If they're capable of firing Biagi and Santoro, they could easily fire us, we're less important !" "And no one could do anything, not even raise an eyebrow because Berlusconi is ruthless !" "Then we got involved with the daily cases of censorship at TG1 , radio news reports..." "Often editors say to their reporters:" ""l got a 'phone call'." "We can't talk about this anymore"." "It happens all the time, it's a matter of numbers." " This seriously ?" " Never so violently." "Entire stories were not allowed to be mentioned." "Even page formats !" "News stories aren't prioritised according to journalistic standards." "It's a completely different matter, it's political." "And there are cases of structural censorship like what happened with Channel 7, it was "preventive"." ""Since Channel 7 is an independent station, let's kill it from the start, so it can't be independent." "We'll have someone who we can control buy it, we'll do favours for him, and he'll do some for us." "We'll make sure he doesn't call the people we kick off other channels otherwise it's pointless."" "is the prime minister happy about the new independent channel ?" " Are you happy ?" " What the hell !" " What the hell are you saying ?" " But it's a for-profit TV station." " lt's a disgrace !" " Why ?" "is the profit for me or someone else ?" " Someone else." " Well, then !" " l see..." " That's a conflict of interest !" " How ?" " lt is, all right !" "But, Mr Prime Minister..." "You either have democracy, or censorship." "The two things cannot coexist." "If what happened to people like Santoro, Biagi, Luttazzi," "Tagliafico, Rossi, etc, etc, was censorship," "all our members of parliament... would have nailed themselves to their seats." "They would have gone on hunger strike !" "use the word censorship !" "Let's say right now..." "ral... is noticing... some restriction on pluralism that I'll have to explain better..." "The opposition is somehow going along with the rules of the game because they accepted them." "Because they're playing the game." "Because from that point of view, I think... one side decided to stop attacking for real." "To stop pressing the question as long as they could keep the little they had." "I don't think the opposition has any idea what's going on." "If tomorrow all the present party leaders came back, they'd still make 90% of the same mistakes they made in 1996 and would still be trying to get their men back in." "The opposition has to realize they need a new concept, a revolution of the Italian television and radio system." "They need to give up control of television." "Zapatero was elected and immediately started abolishing the law that let the prime minister appoint public TV executives." "I hope that is irreversible and that people in Italy want it too once the regime has fallen, if it ever does." "Because it's not tolerable that political parties appoint public television." "The problem goes beyond Berlusconi because politicians took possession of rai long before Berlusconi ever got into politics." "He got involved and took advantage of a situation other people had created." "That's why Centre-Left parties don't say a word about this kind of logic, they see nothing strange about it." "shocking declarations to the House." "were ever aware of it." "Berlusconi knows that in 1994 he was guaranteed that his corporation wouldn't be touched if the government changed." "He knows and and so does Honourable Letta." "But you called us a "regime" back then even though we didn't pass a law against conflict of interest, we allowed Berlusconi to run for office despite his media license and Mediaset's sales jumped while we had the majority... 25-fold !" "were these decisions made ?" "And in the interest of whom ?" "Some of the laws most detrimental to the Centre-Left and most favourable to Berlusconi and his cronies were made when the Centre-Left had majority." "I'm talking about white-collar crime laws, laws regarding public television that saved Mediaset's Channel 4, the shelving of the Anti-Corruption Commission, the laws on conflict of interest." "Why did Berlusconi cause the two-Chamber commission to fail after the Centre-Left made laws that were not in the interest of the general public, but were laws that Berlusconi and his cronies asked for ?" "In February 2005, Furio Colombo," "with left-wing leaders," "Berlusconi's legitimacy more than any other newspaper." "Why were so many of them persuaded that it's wrong and damaging to so passionately deal with the man that is so determined to ruin the country, freedom and the constitution and regurgitate fascism, moral, psychological and political poverty" "as well as pre-Nazi thought like that of the Northern League ?" "Why must one want to communicate with someone we don't want to listen to because he has nothing to tell us ?" "This is the mystery I leave you with." ""Freedom means saying 2 + 2 = 4." "If that is granted, all else follows"" "said Orwell." "What is obvious, ridiculous and true must be defended." "It's obvious that if our freedom of expression is restricted," "can do whatever he wants." "Think about me, who by law cannot run for office" "or even become a representative, is now prime minister of the country !" "That is so exhilarating !" "This should give every citizen lots of hope !" "Just relax." "Using money nobody knows where it came from !" "And even though everyone knew it, no one stopped me !" "The opposition was elected so they'd pass a law against conflict of interest and they didn't even do it !" "They see all my china and drop to their knees !" "So I generously tell them:" ""Help yourselves"." "Yes." "When they axed "RAlot",  and fellow artists, jokesters and musicians all came." "For the first time," "on TV and the Internet." "In many towns, public viewings were organized in theatres." "We raised hell !" "I want to be free to talk and listen." "Since RAl won't let us watch it, we had to go somewhere where we could." "We're here to protect what freedom we have left." "The funny thing is that we didn't come to laugh but we're having fun." "I've gone up and down this corridor ten times." "You can't imagine what's going on out there." "outside the auditorium." "and ruin this celebration." "Thank you." " Tell them there's no more room." " But there's a giant screen." "They can see it there." " Do you see it ?" " That's outside ?" "Hello and thanks for coming." "I'd like to tell all the people outside the gate that you alone are 15,000 people." "They go all the way to the bus stop." "Revolution is possible here in the corridor." "In this white light." "It's not a coincidence that we're like a spaceship." "The Centre-Left has to get a move on." "They should run a freedom of information campaign." "If they don't, it's their problem, not the Right's." "When the Left was in power, they didn't do anything." "For future memory," "we fought for ourselves." "And freedom isn't the chance to vote against ourselves." "For future memory," "it looked like a miracle." "no reason to worry anymore." "seeing the people was the reward." "And I wasn't the only one to see." "There were many witnesses, including you." "It wasn't funny at all !"