Agcom dismisses Michele Santoro’s complaint against Bruno Vespa by majority vote. Commissioner Giacomelli: “Profound dissent”

The Agcom Board has closed Michele Santoro’s complaint against Bruno Vespa and the ‘Five minutes’ broadcast, attributable to the Tg1 newspaper. The decision was made by majority. The decision of the Agcom Council was taken with the contrary vote of the commissioners Antonello Giacomelli and Elisa Giomi. After the complaint […]

The Agcom Board archived the complaint Michele Santoro towards Bruno Vespa and the ‘Five minutes’ broadcast, attributable to the newspaper of Tg1. The decision was made by majority. The Council’s decision Agcom it was taken with the commissioners voting against Antonello Giacomelli and Elisa Giomi. After the complaint about the hypothesis of confrontation between Giorgia Melons and Elly SchleinMichele Santoro had written again in recent days to Agcom asking to start an investigation to evaluate the conduct of Bruno Vespa and the director of Tg1, Gian Marco Chiocciregarding the attack suffered during the ‘Cinque Minuti’ broadcast, attributable to the newspaper.

In the episode of the program, Vespa, replying after the stop to the television face-to-face between Elly Schlein And Giorgia Melonihad recalled the cases of Marco Travagliohosted by Daniele Luttazzi, and by Michele Santoro who, according to the journalist, had dedicated four episodes of Il Raggio Verde to direct attacks against Silvio Berlusconi on the occasion of the 2001 political elections, when a Door to door – the host had also recalled – he was denied for the sake of equal conditions to broadcast prime time with guests Berlusconi and Francesco Rutelli, then candidates for Palazzo Chigi. “Is this the pluralism we need to refer to?”, Vespa asked himself.

In response Santoro, now a candidate for the European elections with the Peace, Land, Dignity list, had his lawyers write: “The attack against Santoro is to be considered an end in itself and has the aggravating circumstance of having been made against of a candidate for the European elections in order to insinuate the thesis that Santoro, whose person is to be considered inseparable from the current status as a candidate, has behaved incorrectly and has in turn violated the level playing field, penalizing his image as a political subject”.

“I expressed my profound dissent for a decision that I consider inconsistent, unreasonable and dangerous for the precedent it represents” he commented Antonello Giacomelli, Agcom Commissioner, at the end of the Authority’s Council meeting. “In my opinion there is no doubt that Vespa has violated the rule which provides for the obligation of impartiality towards all candidates, also making questionable use of a public service space for a personal controversy against colleagues, other public service broadcasts , candidates and ultimately, even without ever naming her, against Agcom itself. – continued the Agcom Commissioner – I therefore want to express my regret not only towards Michele Santorowho did not receive the protection he was entitled to as a candidate, but also against two Rai professionals (Marco From Milan and Elisa Anzaldo, ed.) which, like Agcom, in this same council meeting, we had recalled for similar reasons and which, moreover, unlike Vespa, they had worked to recover”. “Evidently other considerations prevailed for Vespa – concluded Giacomelli – I note it with regret but I remain with my opinion: the rules can be changed, but as long as they exist they must apply to everyone in the same way”.