The force of the fourth Estate – investigative journalism in my country

by Nathalie Biancheri, Italy

Italy has been, and unfortunately is still today, a victim of organised crime such as the Mafia, the Camorra and the ‘Ndrangheta. Though in the past work of investigative journalists has been providential for shedding light on the nature of these organisations, an example is the famous reportage on the Mafia by the BBC journalist Gaia Servadio, and though today there are still some journalists who actually work with the scope of uncovering the truth, they are very few, and are isolated cases. The fourth estate in Italy in 2010 is in rapid decline, as its focus has shifted from investigating on matters of real importance to trying to find out the newest gossip scandal to fill the front pages of newspapers. The situation degenerated to a point that the Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi proposed a law, which has been approved by the senate and will now go back to the chamber where it should easily pass, to impose very severe restrictions on one of the primary tools of investigative journalism: the use of wiretaps. This law could have the power to alter, forever, the role, significance and nature of journalism in Italy. Though allegedly it is a field which has deteriorated, it can, when put in practice by the right people, still be as indispensable as it once was, like in the case of Roberto Saviano, an investigative journalist who collected information on the Camorra for five years, and then published it in an incredible and shocking reportage which has become an international best seller, “Gomorra”. The force of the fourth estate in Italy at this present moment is certainly in decline, but with the “Bavaglio” law that may be instituted, it risks dying out completely, and thus today, before discussing its role or its force, one has to go back and analyse what defines good and correct investigative journalism. One must then consider whether the law which may be approved, will, as Mr Berlusconi claims, “defend privacy” and save good investigative journalism from slander, or whether it will, with its sanctions and restrictions, annihilate its practice entirely.

Alan Rusbridger, editor of newspaper The Guardian since 1995, distinguishes exposure journalism from investigative journalism in the following manner: “What’s the public interest of a cricketer having a romp in a hotel room or a rugby player having smoked cannabis 20 years ago? But if elected representatives are arguing a case in Parliament but not revealing that they are being paid to do so, then that strikes at the heart of public democracy ”. In Italy, sadly, most of this so called “investigative” journalism, most of the wiretaps which are put in place and the transcripts of these wiretaps which are easily handed over to journalists before their subject has been deemed guilty by a court, masqueraded as purposeful, pieces of investigative journalism, but in fact have the ultimate scope of exposing a crass scandal that will attract readers. If one considers the distinction made by Rusbridger, then it is perhaps understandable that the Italian government has decided to take some measures against this unstoppable wave of trash “investigations” invading its country. It suffices to say that in 2008 124,326 phone taps were authorised, meaning that 76 out of every 100000 Italians had phone taps. The latest scandal saw Claudio Scajola, Italy’s ex industry minister, resign over allegations involving building contracts, after newspapers reported the contents of court documents that were, in part, based on wiretaps, before anything had been proven in court.

The “Bavaglio law” was introduced in an attempt – according to Mr Berlusconi – to limit, “the amount of wire taps in Italy” and to prevent investigations “from being ruined before any judge or jury has the chance to deliberate”. The law would impede magistrates from giving out interception transcripts to journalists, forbid interceptions to take place unless they have been approved by three judges, and unless they have evidence that a serious crime has been committed. The sanctions for those that transgress the law could be as severe as three years of incarceration. The rare examples of “real” investigative journalists who have dedicated their lives to fighting organised crime, like Lirio Abbate and Roberto Saviano, and others who have dealt with issues that in Italy are too often forgotten, like Fabrizio Gatti, the journalist from “L’Espresso” who disguised himself as an immigrant and wrote about the working conditions of illegal immigrants in Puglia, all strongly oppose this law. They feel, like many other journalists and members of the general public, that the law is an affront to one’s freedom of expression, and that if it were approved, the fight against groups such as the Mafia or the Camorra would be hindered. “Having fewer taps and more restrictions would be devastating when one considers Italy’s notoriously slow judicial system” says Gianfrancesco Turano, in an article on “L’Espresso”. “Will we have to wait decades before reporting matters of public interest?” Lirio Abbate, also in “L’Espresso”, points out that in journalism something may be “morally pertinent but not relevant form a juridical point of view”, and that this law would wash out any “truths” not dealt with by the law.

However, those in line with the opposition defend the law by claiming that its regulations do not apply to Mafia and terrorism investigations, and thus the fundamental role of the fourth estate in fighting these issues will be preserved. Giorgio Straquantonio, a journalist who has the broadside from the others in the field, has declared in an interview with the national TV channel “Rai” that: “Journalists in Italy are lazy. In few other countries are they handed the contents of wiretap transcripts so routinely as they are here. It means they don't do proper journalism, like making contacts with people." Though journalists such as Mr Straquantonio acknowledge that wire taps have been of use in Mafia investigations, they believe that most of what is ultimately published is gossip.

Yet in Italy, where the fourth estate has already declined, and where good investigative journalism is direly needed because of the many groups of organised crime, wouldn’t passing this law be like clipping the wings of an already wounded bird? Wouldn’t it only worsen the situation of a very shaky sector, and hinder the hard work of the professionals of the field that strive to keep it alive? In Italy, today, investigative journalism has very little “force”. New meaning and scope must be given to this practice, for the fourth estate is at the basis of our founding notions of freedom of expression, it is a means through which the individual can expose the truth independently of institutions or of the law, and most of all, it is something which Italy honestly needs.

Nathalie Biancheri, 22, is currently doing her Masters in International Journalism at City University London. Despite her young age she has worked as a correspondent for the Italian news agency ANSA.