Telejato
Encyclopedia
Telejato is a small, local, independent television station based in the town of Partinico
, in Sicily
, Italy
. It is widely known for its anti-Mafia
reportage.
the Italian Communist Refoundation Party
(Partito della Rifondazione Comunista or PRC) which, in turn, sold it, in 1999, to Pino Maniaci, a Sicilian building contractor and entrepreneur.
At the time of its purchase by Maniaci, the station was ostensibly in a state of "impending financial collapse", due to the debts incurred by its previous management. Moreover, its classification as ‘community television
’ carried an advertising limit of three minutes per hour. Maniaci's stated intention was to turn his mostly family-run Telejato into a "miniature, amateur CNN", as he called it, and, therefore, "the world’s longest TV news programme" was born, with a total of two hours of service, from 2:30 pm until 4:30pm.
Gradually, Telejato turned to investigative reportage, first turning its attention to local polluters. The station has been sued "more than 200 times" from Distilleria Bertolino alone, on account of the many reportages carried out by Telejato into alleged pollution by the distillery factory.
The Sicilian Mafia
eventually became the station's main subject of reporting.
In 2007, Telejato's reporting on the unauthorised use of an extended land area by cattle barns that allegedly belonged to local, Maffia-affiliated families and had been operating there for more than twenty years, led to renewed threats. Pino's daughter, Letizia, hung placards outside the stables, reading "Stables of shame." The next day, Pino Maniaci was allegedly beaten by two unknown teenagers in the street and taken to hospital. After receiving first aid assistance, Maniaci left the hospital and, with bruises and cuts visible on his face, went on the air to denounce from Telejato, once more, the ostensibly Maffia-run cattle business. Soon after, the Italian carabinieri
, in a combined anti-Mafia operation, closed down the illegal barns in the area.
In 2008, Pino Maniaci's car, parked outside his home, was "doused with gasoline" and set on fire. This episode is part of what Maniaci claims is a constant process of threats, which manifests itself in "countless attacks", such as slashed tyres or severed brake cables in the cars he uses and even windscreens shattered by gunshots.
Maniaci was subsequently granted police protection.
The website of Telejato has often been blocked or rendered inaccessible to web search engines, allegedly as a result of Mafia-ordered hacking.
In September 2011, many abusive and threatening graffitti messages appeared on the walls of the town of Partinico, such as "You've ruined this country!" and "The ruling has been issued", ostensibly directed against Maniaci. The federation of Italian journalists and the Sicilian federation of journalists expressed their solidarity with Telejato.
, in March 2009.
In 2009, Pino Maniaci was indicted by Palermo public prosecutor Paoletta Caltabellotta for exercising the journalistic profession "without the necessary state license." The indictment did not reach the courts, as Maniaci was given honoris causa a journalistic license by the Italian federation of journalists.
, with an approximate target viewership of 150,000 people.
Partinico
Partinico is a town and comune in the province of Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy...
, in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is widely known for its anti-Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
reportage.
History
The station was founded in 1989 by Alberto Lo Iacono and subsequently sold tothe Italian Communist Refoundation Party
Communist Refoundation Party
The Communist Refoundation Party is a communist Italian political party. Its current secretary is Paolo Ferrero....
(Partito della Rifondazione Comunista or PRC) which, in turn, sold it, in 1999, to Pino Maniaci, a Sicilian building contractor and entrepreneur.
At the time of its purchase by Maniaci, the station was ostensibly in a state of "impending financial collapse", due to the debts incurred by its previous management. Moreover, its classification as ‘community television
Community television
Australia's Community Television is a form of Citizen media much like Public Access Television in the United States and the Community Channel in Canada...
’ carried an advertising limit of three minutes per hour. Maniaci's stated intention was to turn his mostly family-run Telejato into a "miniature, amateur CNN", as he called it, and, therefore, "the world’s longest TV news programme" was born, with a total of two hours of service, from 2:30 pm until 4:30pm.
Gradually, Telejato turned to investigative reportage, first turning its attention to local polluters. The station has been sued "more than 200 times" from Distilleria Bertolino alone, on account of the many reportages carried out by Telejato into alleged pollution by the distillery factory.
The Sicilian Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
eventually became the station's main subject of reporting.
Intimidation
Telejato's owner and most of the people working there have reported receiving anonymous threats against their lives and their families' well-being, all of which, they claim, come from local Mafia bosses who are upset with the publicity caused by the station's anti-Mafia activity.In 2007, Telejato's reporting on the unauthorised use of an extended land area by cattle barns that allegedly belonged to local, Maffia-affiliated families and had been operating there for more than twenty years, led to renewed threats. Pino's daughter, Letizia, hung placards outside the stables, reading "Stables of shame." The next day, Pino Maniaci was allegedly beaten by two unknown teenagers in the street and taken to hospital. After receiving first aid assistance, Maniaci left the hospital and, with bruises and cuts visible on his face, went on the air to denounce from Telejato, once more, the ostensibly Maffia-run cattle business. Soon after, the Italian carabinieri
Carabinieri
The Carabinieri is the national gendarmerie of Italy, policing both military and civilian populations, and is a branch of the armed forces.-Early history:...
, in a combined anti-Mafia operation, closed down the illegal barns in the area.
In 2008, Pino Maniaci's car, parked outside his home, was "doused with gasoline" and set on fire. This episode is part of what Maniaci claims is a constant process of threats, which manifests itself in "countless attacks", such as slashed tyres or severed brake cables in the cars he uses and even windscreens shattered by gunshots.
Maniaci was subsequently granted police protection.
The website of Telejato has often been blocked or rendered inaccessible to web search engines, allegedly as a result of Mafia-ordered hacking.
In September 2011, many abusive and threatening graffitti messages appeared on the walls of the town of Partinico, such as "You've ruined this country!" and "The ruling has been issued", ostensibly directed against Maniaci. The federation of Italian journalists and the Sicilian federation of journalists expressed their solidarity with Telejato.
Accolades and controversies
Letizia Maniaci, Pino's daughter and Telejato's main reporter (Maniaci's son Giovanni also works at the station), has been awarded the Maria Grazia Cutuli journalism award for her work. Letizia Maniaci has written a book about her life, working in Telejato, which was published in Italy by RizzoliRCS MediaGroup
RCS MediaGroup S.p.A. , based in Milan and listed on the Italian Stock Exchange, is an international multimedia publishing group that operates in daily newspapers, magazines and books, radio broadcasting, new media and digital and satellite TV...
, in March 2009.
In 2009, Pino Maniaci was indicted by Palermo public prosecutor Paoletta Caltabellotta for exercising the journalistic profession "without the necessary state license." The indictment did not reach the courts, as Maniaci was given honoris causa a journalistic license by the Italian federation of journalists.
Audience
Telejato's signal covers the twenty-five provinces of PalermoPalermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, with an approximate target viewership of 150,000 people.
External links
- Telejato corporate website
- National Federation of Italian Journalists official website (in Italian)