The silence of the Ranucci family, whom no one dared to disturb

It was the silence of the Ranuccis. The founders of Report were sidelined in silence; Rai’s internal audits into Ranucci concluded in silence; and his relationships with female interns – as recounted by Ranucci in his book – were swept under the carpet. Ranucci, the Rai journalist who today posted a video set to Simon & Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence” while packing boxes – how would he have told this story? It is a story of anonymous letters, tip-offs, alleged harassment, “irregular behaviour by the presenter” – never proven – and suggestions that the former RAI management (the previously undisclosed details now coming to light) chose to ignore. It was 2021, and a single episode of *Report* had the power to destroy economies and listed companies. No RAI director dared to ask Ranucci what he was about to broadcast or which contributors he was choosing. The RAI director-general at the time was Carlo Fuortes, a left-wing figure who is now superintendent of the Maggio Musicale, and who recalls: “Yes, there had been an internal audit into Ranucci’s alleged misconduct, which was eventually shelved.” In what climate did that audit take place? How was it conducted? If it were reopened today, would it lead to the same outcome?

Ranucci insists he will return to Report and is threatening legal action – the very same kind of legal action he used to complain about receiving whilst he was the programme’s presenter. To dramatise his departure from the programme, he posted a video on social media showing empty boxes and drawers. What is missing is the truth. Rai did not force him to leave the office, despite the fact that Ranucci has a significant amount of annual leave to use up (Rai has just been ordered to pay 40,000 in compensation to Franco Bragagna, a Rai Sport reporter, who was – unlike Ranucci – placed on compulsory leave). It is the Report editorial team that now views Ranucci as an outsider, and it is this same team that is now distancing itself from him. Ranucci decided of his own accord to step aside so that his old team could carry on working in ‘peace’. But who disrupted that peace, even before his relationship with Lavitola – which has been known since 2019 – came to light, to the extent that he was brought into Rai? And how many other journalists have left Report, forced to do so in silence? Now that the ‘Buscettas’ of Report are coming forward, it is worth telling the full story, which dates back to 2021 and has unfolded over time. It is worth highlighting the complicity of certain elements within Rai who allowed Ranucci to threaten MPs – as in the case of Andrea Ruggeri, a former Forza Italia MP, who received messages from Ranucci warning him about alleged dossiers on politicians (in Ranucci’s possession) who were using cocaine.

It was November 2021 when the RAI management received a report regarding the programme Report, concerning reprehensible behaviour on the part of Ranucci. The same report was sent, in July, to the members of the Supervisory Commission, of which Faraone and Ruggeri are members. Three cases are mentioned; these are three cases involving three women. At the time, under the Draghi government, the chair of Rai was Marinella Soldi – now chair of the BBC’s board of directors – a chair who, during her tenure, fought to close the gender pay gap at Rai. When the salaries of Report’s staff were made public, there was an outcry over the figures, but nobody noticed that these figures were for men and that the women were paid significantly less. The letter—which Ranucci himself will denounce—lists two cases of workplace bullying and refers to an investigation conducted so superficially that it ended up damaging the organisation. In both cases, romantic relationships are mentioned, followed by forms of exclusion once those relationships had ended. It should be noted that Ranucci was a deputy director with supreme authority, unrivalled within Rai, with the power to personally recruit staff and to sign off on and authorise business trips. In 2020, he was appointed deputy director ad personam by the late Franco Di Mare, and a newsroom tailored to his needs, Report Lab, was created. In 2022, he became Rai’s deputy director of in-depth reporting, marking the height of Ranucci’s influence. There is a ‘before’ and an ‘after’. Before, during the Gabanelli era and up until 2022, the role of programme head existed, but afterwards, that role disappeared and Ranucci took full control of the programme and its budget. The third case reported in that letter concerns one of the founders of Report, who was dismissed for failing to produce a hostile investigation into a healthcare group in Lombardy. The journalist, who has over twenty years of reporting and awards to her name, realises that the accusation does not hold water, that the arguments are preconceived. Upon receiving the piece, Ranucci discards it because he considers it too balanced; she defends herself by explaining that she had never been assigned that piece, despite emails proving otherwise. An internal RAI audit was launched, but the case came to light on 24 November 2021 before the Supervisory Commission. Faraone, of IV, intervened and, for the first time, raised the issue of the anonymous letter. He demanded answers. Ruggeri also confirmed that he had received the anonymous letter but boasted of having thrown it away, highlighting the divergence in their journalistic approaches. The following day, as Ruggeri recounted, Ranucci bombarded Ruggeri with messages, informing him that he was receiving dossiers but should not make use of them. Ruggeri says today: “I didn’t know him back then. He sent me aggressive messages and reproached me for not having warned him. Since when has an MP been required to warn Ranucci? I found it peculiar, and even more so those messages he sent me”. What should be done about the report on reprehensible behaviour? The internal audit’s fact-finding process is conducted with Ranucci as the absolute head of Report. Report editors are interviewed – the very same people for whom he sets salaries and allocates travel allowances and assignments. The few who try to present a different version of events are not received by the directors; the contents of the audit become public, and that is enough to realise that the balance tilts in Ranucci’s favour. Furthermore, at Rai, no one is left without a job. Why, if you’re on the career ladder, would you take on a fight against an icon? The Rai audit concludes with the case being shelved, as Fuortes recalls, except that the CEO fails to mention a part that was ignored by senior management. What prevented a full search for the truth was the programme’s organisational structure. At the time, there was no programme manager external to Report because this was incompatible with Ranucci’s role as deputy director. The audit suggested that, as a matter of good practice, control mechanisms should also be put in place for the topics covered. It was only under the right-wing leadership that the role of programme manager was reinstated. Luigi Pompili was chosen, and it was Ranucci himself who announced this in a post. Ranucci writes: “I want to inform you directly to avoid any misunderstandings. After around 10 years, Rai has decided, for reasons that are well known, to remove my responsibility for signing off on matters relating to attendance, contracts, travel, purchases, legal matters – whether criminal or civil – and dealings with regulatory authorities.” Out of two hundred Rai programmes, Report was the only one without an external programme director, and it was not Ranucci’s fault. Ever since those threats against Ruggeri, Rai has been characterised by internal competition linked to Ranucci, silence and complicity. It is that silence that Ranucci finds comfort in – the song by Simon & Garfunkel. The story of Report and these turbulent years is encapsulated in this verse: “And no one dared / Disturb the sound of silence”, “And no one dared / to challenge the clamour of silence”.