Letters
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR •
How to restore balance to the coverage of the war in the Middle East. Advice
Who wrote to the editor-in-chief, Claudio Cerasa
10 OCT 26
Translated by AI
Photo: ANSA
To the Editor – In 1955, as a secondary school pupil, I attended a screening at a local cinema with my class and other school groups of “K2”, the official documentary which recounted – through stunning imagery – the feat of the 1954 Italian expedition, during which Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli became the first to summit that peak. Today’s pupils will be shown, relentlessly in schools, the documentary film “Naza” until someone reacts like Mr Fantozzi did when the film “Battleship Potemkin” was screened, for the umpteenth time, in the canteen.
Giuliano Cazzola
To restore balance to the coverage of the war in the Middle East, following the ‘Naza’ model, here are three recommendations. ‘Fauda’ – as you know (episodes six and seven of the fifth series). ‘Naza: The Real Story’, an Israeli documentary based on the testimonies of IDF commanders and intelligence officers. Luigi Marattin’s appearance on Thursday evening’s ‘Piazza pulita’, in which he attempted to explain the obvious: equating the terrorism that drove Hamas to launch its attack on 7 October with the reasons that led Israel to defend itself with all its might – even if this resulted in tragedy, as all urban wars are tragic – is a celebration of bad faith, not a quest for truth.
To the Editor – Dear Mr Cerasa, I would like to know why your newspaper today referred to me as ‘the Minister of Camellias’. Anyone familiar with literature and the novel by Alexandre Dumas fils – and I have no doubt that you at Il Foglio are familiar with it – knows that this reference carries a derogatory meaning and has discriminatory and sexist connotations towards a woman. I therefore expect a detailed explanation of this questionable editorial decision. I would also like to clarify, so that the facts are at least accurately reported, that it was not I who recalled the incident involving the ‘franchi tiratori’ that concerned me, but a journalist from another publication. I look forward to an explicit explanation in your newspaper regarding the term used in reference to me. Yours sincerely.
Elisabetta Casellati
Minister for Institutional Reforms and Regulatory Simplification
Carmelo Caruso replies. Dear Minister, the camellia was not Dumas’s, but simply his brooch, which made me think of the flower. No disparagement, no irony; it was meant to be nothing more than a floral gesture, but I am sorry if the metaphor was not understood and brought Dumas to mind. As Montanelli says, I am the fool if I do not make myself clear. I reiterate that there was no insinuation; if anything, it was simply a reflection on your words (which, incidentally, brought to mind an episode – your election – where loyalty was lacking). Sincere and genuine regards.