Andrea Giambruno e il suo cambiamento di opinione sulla ‘transumanza dei migranti’: “Non sono razzista, ho commesso un errore”
Andrea Giambruno, journalist for Rete4 and partner of the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, apologizes for using the term “transhumance” in relation to the movement of migrants. “During Friday’s episode of Diario del giorno, dedicated to the complex phenomenon of illegal immigration, I used a completely inappropriate term. I apologize to these people, to the audience, and to the company,” says the journalist, trying to put an end to the controversy that arose after the episode of ‘Diario del giorno’ aired on September 29th on Rete 4.
The gaffe has been widely mocked on social media, with memes and jokes. “During a live broadcast, thousands of words are used, and it can happen to anyone, humanly, to make a mistake, but accusations of racism – says the host of ‘Diario del giorno’ – are far from my beliefs and my history.”
The previous incident
Giambruno found himself at the center of another controversy at the end of August. During an episode of Diario del Giorno (with guest Pietro Senaldi), which discussed some cases of sexual violence that have shaken public opinion, such as those in Palermo and Caivano, Giambruno said: “If you go dancing, you have every right to get drunk – there shouldn’t be any misunderstandings, says Senaldi, and no stumbling blocks – but if you avoid getting drunk and losing consciousness, maybe you can also avoid certain problems and the risk of encountering the wolf.” These words sparked a hornet’s nest.
The journalist addressed the issue in a subsequent interview with Corriere della Sera. “I never said ‘the girl asked for it’ or that, if you avoid getting drunk, ‘you won’t get raped’: these quotes came out in a newspaper and then everywhere, but it’s pure defamation,” he said. “I allowed myself to tell young people, boys and girls without gender distinctions, not to go out specifically to get drunk and do drugs, I recommended them to be careful because, unfortunately, you will find the ill-intentioned person. I didn’t say that men are entitled to rape drunk women. Instead, certain politicians go after a false headline, they demand my suspension, but for what? For telling young people not to do drugs?”
Giorgia Meloni’s response
On September 7th, the issue was also brought up to the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, during a press conference. “I don’t tell Andrea Giambruno what to say on TV. I think Andrea Giambruno said something different from what most people interpreted. In those words, I don’t read ‘if you wear a miniskirt, you can be raped,’ I read something similar to what my mother used to tell me when I went out as a girl: be alert and use common sense,” said the Prime Minister.
“Unfortunately, rapists exist, and we must not let our guard down. The concept of staying as present as possible and doing our best not to put ourselves in a position to allow these animals to do what they want… I think this is advice that many parents would give to their children: be alert and use common sense. I find no justification for those who rape. Girls, be careful: that’s what I see,” Meloni’s response to the question.
The Prime Minister then added, “For months, I have been called into question for anything Andrea Giambruno says. I would like to understand what interpretation you give to the concept of freedom of the press. As I see it, a journalist does not say on TV what his wife thinks. My idea of freedom of the press is this: I am not held accountable for what a journalist says in the exercise of their profession, and that journalist is not attacked in the exercise of their profession because they love me. Please, in the future, do not ask me to account for what a journalist declares in the free expression of their work. I do not believe that I should tell them what to say, I do not believe that I can do it because I believe in freedom of the press,” Meloni said, addressing the journalists.
