Media Pluralism Monitor 2024: information freedom in Italy is at risk
The situation described in the Media Pluralism Monitor 2024, a research conducted by the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom (CMPF), throws further concern on the protection of press and information freedom in Italy.
In particular, the report highlights a series of issues already repeatedly denounced by Italian civil society and journalists’ representatives: a compression of freedom of information, especially through increasingly frequent use of SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) an increasing concentration of media ownership in the hands of a few entrepreneurs, especially concerning the interest that Senator Angelucci has shown in the possible acquisition of the Italian News Agency (Agi); the increasing political control over RAI, which, although not a new fact in Italy, is reaching levels hardly ever seen before, both from the point of view of governance, with the report speaking of ‘a blatant occupation operation by the majority political forces, and from the point of view of economic dependence, through the cut in the licence fee, compensated by the increase in the allocation of government funds (still coming from general taxation) the absence of a change of voices, which produces a media galaxy that is purely male-dominated, starting with the governance and leadership of the national media.
The topic of SLAPPs and the broader guarantee of freedom of information have recently been the subject of interventions by the European Union. The anti-SLAPP directive dictates certain principles to be implemented in the member states to protect the freedom of journalists and civil society, to prevent legal actions from leading to a dangerous restriction of the right to report news, such as the reversal of the burden of proof or compensation for legal costs for those who suffer legal action and are subsequently acquitted or discharged. What is needed is for Italy to soon make the indications contained in this directive its own, also proceeding to the decriminalisation of the offence of defamation, without this being counterbalanced by huge economic penalties.
Regarding freedom of information, the EU has instead intervened with the Media Freedom Act, which, in turn, dictates a series of rules, such as a fairer distribution of public resources, governance of state-owned companies that leads to less influence from political power, and greater transparency about media ownership. In this case, too, the hope is that Italy will make these recommendations its own.
On the other hand, the theme of inclusiveness is a recurring call for the media to give more space to voices from civil society, both organised and not, which have broad and direct expertise on many of the issues under discussion and which today, instead, struggle to find space in the media landscape.
