Journalists at Italian state broadcaster RAI have announced that they will not sign their reports tomorrow in protest, deepening a conflict with management over a series of errors during their commentary of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony.
The Milan-Cortina games began last Friday with a ceremonial opening ceremony at Milan's San Siro stadium, but the event for viewers in Italy was overshadowed by a series of broadcasting errors made by RAI's sports programming director, Paolo Petreca.
Petreka, who is considered close to Prime Minister Giordano Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, opened the evening by greeting the spectators at the "Olympic Stadium", which is located in Rome, instead of the famous San Siro. He then misidentified Italian actress Matilda De Angelis as American megastar Mariah Carey, and confused International Olympic Committee President Kirstie Coventry with the daughter of the Italian president.
He did not recognize two members of the highly successful Italian women's volleyball team who were carrying the Olympic torch, said that Spanish athletes are "always very handsome", and that many Chinese athletes "naturally... have phones in their hands".
In a letter to employees sent on Wednesday, RAI's main journalists' union, Usigrai, said his comment represented "a serious blow to RAI's image and the dignity of all journalists."
RAI also did not comment on the outcry, but a source from the media outlet stated that director general Giampaolo Rossi decided not to entrust Petrucci with commentating on the closing ceremony on February 22nd.
RAI sports journalists announced that, in protest, they would withhold their signatures from Olympic coverage and organize a three-day strike after the end of the Games.
The dispute comes at a time of a broader cultural struggle that has gripped Italian public service since the right-wing coalition of Giorgio Meloni took power in 2022.
Opposition parties have renamed the network “TeleMeloni,” accusing the government of filling it with underqualified loyalists. Government ministers have dismissed the criticism, saying that RAI has been dominated for years by the center-left, who they say are now unhappy with the loss of control. RAI is the country’s largest media organization and operates the country’s television, radio and digital news services.
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