The host takes stock of his TV season between public and private
Just a few more weeks and… Massimiliano Ossini will complete the commitment with for the second consecutive year One morning. A lucky edition which recorded a share of 19.10% with peaks of 32%. TO FQMagazine the presenter, in the twenty-fourth year of a career spent almost always in Viale Mazzini, proudly takes stock of this decidedly positive experience and says he is ready to compete with programs of a different nature. The most coveted goal? The Sanremo Festival, as it should be for anyone who does his job. Before then, however, there are other stages through which Ossini, – spokesperson of the “gentle revolution” on TV and a firm supporter of that kalipé which indicates proceeding at a short and slow pace – would like to pass.
One morning is approaching the end of the season. Satisfied with this vintage?
A lot, because it is work that has been going on for 24 months with the desire to modify and give a different soul to the program. This year there was confirmation of both ratings, which have increased, and quality and appreciation from those who follow us. We cover everything, even crime news, but as little as possible and always with a polite and tactful approach. The novelty was the introduction, on Monday, of the story of what is happening in Italy, for example the world of disability, highlighting what the protagonists managed to do with their abilities.
What do you think were the other strong points of the current edition?
Place emphasis on how certain products are made and where the raw materials come from. It is a fundamental topic because as consumers we decide less and less, instead we must be able to maintain attention even on daily choices. And then the fact that with Daniela Ferolla we worked in the same direction. It wasn’t difficult because she has the same vision as me on certain things. We worked very well as a team.
What was it like to have her join a mechanism that last year you managed alone?
You have to be smart when there are two of you. If I had been alone I would have made a slightly different program, in two you exploit and you adapt. As a child I did judo and his philosophy is ‘If you push I’ll pull and if you pull I’ll push you’: in my opinion it also applies when you do a transmission, because you don’t have to fight the water but go towards the river. In my case I was lucky as we both have the same goals.
Yet months ago there was talk of a tense atmosphere backstage between you…
In the first few days some nervous situations passed as big arguments even between us, in reality we never argued. Surely at the beginning there were slightly different visions, then when we decided to sit down at the table and start a journey all this fell away. A case has been made up compared to what really happened.
Did you just have to take measurements?
Yes, because at the end of last season I left for Kilimanjaro and we didn’t have the chance to meet in the summer for a chat and to understand the project. We found ourselves on the air together.
There’s no two without three, are you thinking of returning to the helm of the program again next year?
I am in the hands of the company as always, if there were the possibility willingly because I like it, but I am also ready for new important challenges. I’m not saying Sanremo, in my opinion it’s not the right time, it takes time and age, I’m happy to wait, but I can play it in other situations.
So you still have dreams to realize in Rai?
Even though I have hosted many programs, I would like to go back to doing quizzes like I did with “Are you better than a fifth grader?” on Sky, as well as prime time variety shows and the icing on the cake in 5-6 years – when there is the opportunity and I am adequately mature – would be the Sanremo Festival.
Is he a big music listener?
Yes, and I am really happy with how in recent years Amadeus and his team have managed to ensure that Rai returns to being a leader thanks to music, bringing that of young people to a Festival that young people no longer saw. We have shown that Rai can be truly pop. It would be nice to continue this path.
As far as quizzes are concerned, with the departure of Amadeus there is a vacancy…
The roster of presenters that there is at the moment in Rai is not very large, so I am quite convinced that there is and will be space, then I don’t know if today or tomorrow, and for this very reason I continue to be ready. For example a One morningevery week we do a quiz that we wrote ourselves.
What is his day like when he is busy with One morning?
I generally wake up at 4.45am, do an hour’s run then go to work. After the live broadcast I have a meeting for the following day, I go to the gym, in the afternoon when I stay in Rome there can be the cinema, the theater or a museum, then I reread the articles I need for the episodes. It also depends on the period: this was intense because I created a book that was published by Rizzoli, Kilimanjaro. So far, so close born from a trip I took with my daughter. I wanted her to be able to be read by children as well, so I had to fit her words with mine. The title also indicates the way of thinking of different generations, who seem distant but are close. We need to find the link, but it’s there.
In recent days another historic host of the program, Franco Di Mare, is at the center of attention for the revelations about his illness and the alleged lack of support, on a human level, from Rai. What effect did his words have on you?
I had him as a guest at the beginning of this year because we wanted to comment on the war close to us, and he is one of the greatest experts we have had in Rai. I didn’t know about the disease, when I saw him I felt sorry for him, he is so energetic and strong. I’m happy because when it went on air I saw it light up again and it enlightened us regarding the topic we were dealing with. I’m sorry if there were to be a similar rift between Franco Di Mare and Rai, he is a face of the company. The problem that I also experience is that often as conductors we are there and remain, but the directors change, and the relationship with new people also changes. I therefore hope it is a reason linked to this, and not that Rai has forgotten about him. It seems difficult to me, also because in the company we always talk about Franco Di Mare with consideration.
His career has always essentially taken place in Rai. Have you ever had the temptation to explore other realities?
I did the aforementioned Are you better than a fifth grader? on Sky, two editions that went very well, so much so that we wanted to continue the journey in that direction, but when I was little I had a dream.
Which?
When I did Disney Channel I didn’t go into the world of MTV and All Music veejays because I knew that my friend Giovanni Muciaccia who hosted Disney Club he would have left the program in two years and for me joining Rai was everything, so I said to myself: “I’ll wait” and then I did it. When I’m in the car with the Rai logo, when I go abroad and they recognize me because they see me thanks to Rai Italia I feel really proud. Never say never in life: certainly if elsewhere they offered an extra ‘zero’ it would be a completely different thing, but I feel like a Rai man also because of the style and management I have.
They call her the friendly face of TV, but what is it that makes her impatient?
Superficiality in the workplace. Everyone has tasks that if not done well can undermine the work of an entire team.
And in private?
I don’t get very angry, but I can’t stand rudeness and lack of respect for the environment, lack of love for oneself and others, and that’s what I annoy my children about.
