The reported interest of rightwing MP
and newspaper proprietor Antonio Angelucci in Italy's second
news agency AGI is a "further alarm bell" for the government's
alleged moves to take over the Italian news and information
system, the centre-left opposition Democratic Party (PD) said
Sunday.
Premier Giorgia Meloni has moved key allies into top posts at
public broadcaster Rai, sparking an outcry from the opposition
despite this being the norm in Italy's spoils system.
The PD's media pointman, journalist Sandro Ruotolo, said it was
"extremely concerning" that Rome health clinic king Angelucci,
owner of conservative dailies Il Giornale (Ex Berlusconi family
owned), Libero and Il Tempo, was now allegedly moving to take
over AGI from state-owned energy giant Eni, as reported by
leftwing daily Il Fatto Quotidiano.
"A law on conflicts of interest can no longer be put off," said
Ruotolo, a former prominent leftwing TV reporter.
"The news, reported by today's Fatto Qutoidiano, of talks by the
king of Lazio clinics Antonio Angelucci, a rightwing MP and
rightwing newspaper publisher, aimed at also buying AGI, Eni's
press agency, is a further alarm bell on control of the media by
the Meloni government.
"Today Angelucci is a League MP and Eni is a company whose main
shareholder is the economy ministry, which is negotiating the
sale of an extremely important industrial branch with an MP from
the same party as (Economy) Minister (Giancarlo) Giorgetti.
"AGI is the seconf Italian news agency (after ANSA) which, as a
primary source must be independent and which would instead
become part of one political side.
"It is a further attack on the liberty and independence of the
media in our country".
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