Italy shuts down and the US elections steal the show in the battle against Covid. Eurispes – CoRiS Sapienza Television News Observatory
Italy shuts down. Government-Regions clash. Speranza has the last word. 2020 presidential election: prime time elects Biden
The news week is largely taken up with the further escalation of the contagions and the new measures, which from Friday redesign the country by dividing it into 3 zones with different levels of risk: 25 openings. Otherwise, space is given to the elections in the United States, which on several occasions steal the scene from the battle against Covid. The analysis of the Eurispes – CoRiS Sapienza Television News Observatory for the week from 2 to 6 of November.
Tuesday’s passing of the new Dpcm, with the return of lockdown measures for several regions, is accompanied by growing tension between the government and the territories. The voice of protest is expressed most vigorously on the Mediaset news, which widely illustrate the effects of the measures on the hardest hit categories; attention is also paid to the initiatives put in place at the local level, with Thursday’s Tg4 dedicating a headline to the “babel of ordinances” put forward by mayors and municipalities “left to their own devices”. The voice of the executive is, however, the most present, with the interventions of Minister Speranza (quoted in 12 headlines) who, along with Prime Minister Conte, responds to the criticism of Fontana and the other governors. Significant space is also given to President Mattarella’s calls for unity (they stand out in 12 other headlines).
With the increase in the number of hospitalisations and casualties, the focus of prime time is once again on healthcare facilities, with Tg5 reporting on Thursday that the “critical threshold” of 40% of places occupied in intensive care had been exceeded. In spite of this data, analysts’ assessments remain positive, with Zangrillo – interviewed on Monday by Tg4 – nevertheless optimistic, given the lower number of victims. On Friday, the word turns to images, with several reports dedicated to the lunar atmospheres of famous squares and streets in northern cities that ended up in the red zone and were once again spectrally empty.
Among the in-depth reports on prime time, the one on Monday’s La7 news stands out on the state of the RSAs in the country, where 40% of deaths were recorded during the first wave. In commenting on the report, Milena Gabanelli and Mentana launched an unison appeal to Minister Speranza, condemning the serious disorganisation that still pervades this important care sector, in which an “out-of-control” situation appears to have been exposed, and which does not seem to have learnt any lessons from the thousands of deaths over the spring months.
Presidential election, clash to the last vote. Prime time “elects” Biden. Tg2 drops its Trump defence
The wait for the results of the election on November 4, with the final vote clash between Biden and Trump in the disputed states, dominates the foreign page with 47 headlines. In a scenario made murky by President Trump’s communication – which between Wednesday and Friday repeatedly denounced fraud and manipulation of the postal vote – prime time soon takes the side of the Democratic candidate, with Tg5 on Thursday inviting commentator Carlo Rossella, for whom «Biden’s America will not be isolationist». On Friday, it is Tg1 that proposes a report on the effects of Trump’s protests, which not only “make an orderly transition” to the leadership of the country difficult, but also risk blowing up social tensions (echoed in the headlines by all).
Faced with this scenario, not even the most “Trumpian” news outlet (Tg2) seems to want to defend the US President’s claims to the hilt. Sangiuliano’s news programme on Friday also avoided commenting on the fact of the day: the “censorship” operated by some major American networks on Trump’s latest statements, with ABC, CBS and NBC interrupting the live broadcast of his press conference because «the President was giving a series of false information». It is precisely on this issue that Tg4 has promoted the most interesting reflection, involving Molinari of la Repubblica, Serracchiani of the PD and Fidanza of Fratelli d’Italia.
Terrorism and refugees: the news programmes return to talk about “security”. Gigi Proietti, Rome says goodbye to the last “matador”
The attack on Tuesday night in the streets of Vienna agitates the editions (headline for all on Wednesday), and contributes to bringing attention back to the issue of security. Double headlines for Tg4 and Studio Aperto for Minister Lamorgese’s new plan on landings, implemented in collaboration with France and Tunisia, talking about an “anti-migrant blockade” that recycles the Centre-Right’s recipes. Despite the rekindled interest in the migratory phenomenon, many reports lacked references to data on the landings.
The passage of the Zan law to fight homotransfobia – the measures to prevent and contrast discrimination and violence on grounds of sex, gender, orientation and disability – only featured in a Tg3 headline on Wednesday, with Studio Aperto also covering it.
The unexpected death of Gigi Proietti at the age of 80 is very much in the news: 15 titles between Tuesday and Thursday, with plenty of space in the reports for the Capital’s tribute to “the last entertainer”.