An Italian journalist was fined nearly $5500 (€5000) for mocking Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s height in social media posts.
The judge found Giulia Cortese’s two tweets defamatory and constituted “body shaming;” she also imposed a €1,200 suspended judgment.
The encounter in question was when Cortese called Meloni a “little woman” and stated, “I can’t even see you.”
Cortese stated in response to the ruling that Italy has a problem with freedom of speech.
She shared a Photoshopped picture of Meloni on X in October 2021, when Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party was still in the opposition party. The photo showed Meloni standing in front of a bookcase that had a framed portrait of Benito Mussolini, the fascist dictator, artificially attached to it.
Ms. Meloni threatened legal action in a Facebook post.
Later that day, Cortese claimed that she had removed the photo when she realized it was bogus. However, she accused Meloni of instigating a “media pillory” against her.
Cortese wrote that Meloni didn’t frighten her because, as she hyperbolically put it, she is just 3 feet and 9 inches.
Italian news outlets have stated that Ms. Meloni is 5 feet, 3 inches tall, the average height of a woman in Italy.
Cortese was acquitted of the first charge, but she was found guilty of the subsequent “body shaming” tweets.
Although she is not yet committed to appealing, she does have the option to do so.
According to Ms. Meloni’s lawyer, her client intends to give away any windfall to worthy causes.
In her response to the verdict, Ms. Cortese stated that the Italian government had a major issue with journalistic dissent. She added that these are troubling times for independent media and opinion leaders, as the country appears to be heading in the direction of Hungary under Viktor Orbán.
“We deserve better than this appalling and shameful government,” she said, adding that she was “Italian and proud to be.”
