When Rupert Murdoch retired from his News Corp company last week at the age of 93, everyone wanted to know what would happen next to his most controversial brands: Fox News, the Sun, the New York Post. Since his son and successor, Lachlan, has been accused of “doubling down” on the company’s “right wing crusading” in his first days in charge, the answer appears to be: not much.
Similar questions are being asked in Italy of the media empire formerly owned by Silvio Berlusconi, whose own “retirement” in June was somewhat more definitive than Murdoch’s. Berlusconi was ubiquitous in Italy; throughout his lifetime, the late entrepreneur cum politician’s plastic-filled face was plastered across TV adverts, billboards, the news – everywhere. Now everyone wants to know what will happen to his legacy.
The first signs are changes to his TV channel, Canale 5. Second in viewing figures only to the national public broadcasting channel, Rai 1 (Italy’s BBC), Canale 5 is the jewel in the crown of Berlusconi’s Mediaset group, which in turn is the largest commercial broadcaster in the country and one of the largest in the world. Even without Il Cavaliere, the Berlusconis are still a big, powerful presence in the Italian media.
If I were to describe to you what TG5 (the other name for Canale 5) was like six months ago, I would have told you that it’s the most airheaded pile of rubbish I’d ever seen on a screen – and I’ve been known to watch telesales shows. Think of news anchors who look like models (women of course) wearing low-cut dresses and shirts, like some sort of Ron Burgundy wet dream.
Worst of all, though, is a game show aptly named Ciao Darwin, created and hosted by TV veteran Paolo Bonolis, who rose to fame on children’s variety show Bim Bum Bam. First aired 25 years ago, Ciao Darwin takes as its starting point the concept of natural selection, although the programme tends to hone in on scantily clad women rather than evolution. A particular low point was an episode that featured a competition between Italiani and stranieri (foreigners). The “foreigners” were all people of colour. That was only three years ago.
In the months after Berlusconi’s death, talk of change to TG5 has come from none other than Berlusconi’s eldest son, Pier Silvio. At a conference in July, the 54-year-old told the audience: “There has to be change because TV must be for everyone, and we must also open up to a different audience, which needs greater information and current affairs.”
Some of the changes so far have been Ciao Darwin being rescheduled and the 5 o’clock news anchor, Barbara d’Urso, being replaced by Myrta Merlino after 15 years on the show. D’Urso was something of a Berlusconi golden girl. The latest rumour about D’Urso is that she’s moving to the Big Smoke for a new job. Watch out London.
Whatever or whomever Pier Silvio throws out next is a mystery, but it’s important to remember he isn’t the only Berlusconi at Mediaset. His big sister, Marina, was appointed president of Fininvest, the holding company for all the family companies, by her father, meaning she gets her say.
This should not pose an immediate problem, but Marina, unlike Pier Silvio, has expressed an interest in entering politics. Why would she agree to any changes to the television channel that was so helpful to her father’s political career? One of Mediaset’s journalists, Andrea Giambruno, also happens to be the partner of the prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.
But despite losing its figurehead, Canale 5’s audience grew by 8.7% over the summer. That raises the question of why Pier Silvio would ever want to change such a successful channel. Berlusconi may have gone, but his TV legacy – and his influence – lives on.
