A Milan court has ordered a journalist to pay 5,000 euros (Rs 4.5 Lakh) in damages to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for mocking her height in a social media post in what was defined as “body shaming”, Reuters reported.
The journalist, Giulia Cortese, took to X and stated, “Italy’s government has a serious problem with freedom of expression and journalistic dissent. This country seems to get closer to Orbán’s Hungary: these are bad times for independent Journalists and opinion leaders. Let’s hope for better days ahead. We won’t give up!”
Meloni had launched legal action against the journalist after the two women clashed on social media three years ago.
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The Italian PM, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party was in opposition at the time, took exception when Cortese published a mocked-up photo of her with a picture of the late fascist leader Benito Mussolini in the background.
Cortese responded with further tweets including one that translates as “you don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2 metres (4 feet) tall. I can’t even see you.”
Cortese was acquitted over the tweet comparing Meloni to Mussolini, but convicted of defamation over the latter two, which the Milan judge said amounted to “body shaming”.
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Cortese can appeal against the sentence, and Meloni’s lawyer said the prime minister would donate to charity any damages she eventually receives, Reuters reported.
According to various Italian news outlets, Meloni is 1.63 metres (5ft 3in) tall.
However, it is not the first time she has taken legal action against a journalist or someone who has criticised her publicly. Since coming to power, her government has been accused of making strategic use of defamation suits to silence journalists and public intellectuals.
(With inputs from Reuters)