Journalist Found Guilty of Defaming Italian Prime Minister
A judge in Milan has ruled against Italian journalist Giulia Cortese for defaming Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The court ordered Cortese to pay damages of 5,000 euros and court costs. The ruling also included a suspended fine of 1,200 euros for two Twitter posts made in October 2021 when Ms. Meloni was a lawmaker.
In one tweet, Cortese used derogatory language to describe Ms. Meloni, while in another, she made comments about the prime minister’s height, insinuating she was 1.2 meters tall. The prosecutor handling the case labeled it as an instance of body shaming, although Ms. Meloni later confirmed her height to be 1.58 meters.
Cortese expressed that the past three years have been stressful due to her social media accounts being targeted by the prime minister’s supporters, who sent insults and threats. She found the experience unpleasant and deemed the legal proceedings unnecessary, considering the more serious matters needing attention in Italian courts.
David Olivetti, Cortese’s lawyer, mentioned that he would review the ruling before deciding on a possible appeal. Italy’s defamation laws encompass both public figures and private individuals, defining defamation as harm to one’s reputation through communication with multiple people.
