He lived at the station Except Slim. “It was my grandfather terminal masterCefalù: He used to live there with my grandmother. I lived with them for about a year when I was a kid, because my parents both worked. After a lot small trainsI finally had the chance to play with real trains, so much so that I dreamed of growing up instruct them. Watching them for hours, I saw them disappear into the tunnel, which was not far from the station. And I remember serious Who told me: Beyond that, there is Italy.
His father was also a journalist.
“He was working in.” “Sicily newspaper” And because of his job he was never there: he dealt with crime news. I never wanted to work in journalism, precisely because my father, in fact, took it from me. But I soon realized that I loved telling stories, even if through picturesto”.
How did you start?
“During my studies, I also worked in a bookstore, and they gave me 150,000 pounds a month. With this money, I bought myself one of the first used cameras. And I started photographing the things that amazed me the most about my city, Palermo. In a short time I made my rounds: the policeman who told me what was happening, the doctor in the emergency room… At the age of 16 I started introducing myself to some local TV channels.”
adventurer.
“In fact, as a child, I was very shy and even bullied: at school my classmates made fun of me for being overweight and wouldn’t let me play with them. I remember one day when I was alone all the time with the ball in my hand: I couldn’t find anyone who wanted to play with me. The way then, fortunately, woke me up.’
He started working as a journalist at a very young age.
“One of the local TV stations I worked for also sent the pictures to Mediaset. One day they called me to ask if I could go to Rome for an interview. They were looking for an informant from Sicily: Tg5 was about to be born.”
Did he go there in a hurry?
“Actually I replied at first that I could not leave. To round things off, I also started making wedding films, and that week I had three films. It was an important source of income for me. But then I made up my mind and went: in the elevator, in what was Formerly the famous Villa Beppo Bodo, which later became the Mediaset building, I caught Mentana and Lamberto Spuzzini. Mentana said to me, “Are you the little boy who lives in Palermo? You’re too young for the job.” On the other hand, Spozzini, who was the good man of the couple, was more lenient: “Let’s see, if something happens, tell us.” Here, it all happened that year: the eruption of Etna, the murder of Lima, the massacre in Capase, the massacre in Via d’Amelio. In a few months something happened in Sicily that had not happened in ten years.
And there she was.
“But I have never made direct contacts.” When I called Mintana to tell him about the Kapase massacre, after a policeman warned me, he said: We have to do a live broadcast, gather all the material you can and I’ll send a reporter: get on a plane and go. I’ll be there in 2 hours. In fact, he didn’t send anyone and told me at the last minute, so as not to worry, to pose for the camera. Total panic. But we’re starting to do this endless live stream. I was 18 years old.”
And so he began working as a Sicilian reporter for Tg5.
Rai had twenty people in Palermo and twenty in Catania. I was alone in the whole district, and sometimes I also had to cover Calabria.’
Have there been any unpleasant episodes before?
I never told that, not even to Mintana, or he would have sent me out of there. But after four or five years of living in Palermo and following up on crime and the mafia, I came home one evening and noticed that something was different than usual: the street lamp was out. It was time to put the key in the lock, and I felt like two people took me from behind and beat me like locksmiths. I did not report it because I was afraid they would take everything from me.”
Are there regrets?
“It was very important for me to continue doing what I was doing. I wasn’t the messenger who arrived, did a favor and left. I used to live there. I was under pressure. I also remember people stopping me and saying, ‘Why don’t you talk about tourism?’ I didn’t believe.” “With that kind of mentality. But then Mentana took me to Rome. Luckily.”
Did your voice make you famous?
“It’s a sound you either hate or love, but it’s undeniably recognizable. It was my natural way of speaking, and there was nothing built around when I started. Not to mention that at the time I was a boy trying to look older than his age: I compare myself People who are 30 or 40 years older than me, and who don’t take me seriously, however, I have encountered this shyness often over the years.
With what logic?
“When I left Mediaset, I felt that there was a prejudice against me, because for many, working with Berlusconi meant being his friend.”
Was that so?
“I met him in my first year in Tg5, he gave me his number and told me to call if I needed him. Of course I never did. He was a man full of charm, always trying to create a dressing room. He made everyone feel important: from the last kid in Palermo, who was me, to the director. In general, I do not deny the years of Mediaset, it was quite formative».
Can he come back?
“With the right project, why not?”
The big success came with “Fourth Grade,” right?
«« Incredible program. Before, I was hosting Tg5 but at a certain point Clemente Mimoun decided to remove all the guys from hosting 1pm, so they asked me if I wanted to do this pilot, on Rete 4. Previously, reporting was Federica Sciarelli’s business, so I designed the programme: it was a kind of revue with a number of comedy parts. Of course, it was a different way of reporting. It looked like they were going to close the show after three episodes because it wasn’t going well, but then it started growing until it was 17 percent on Rete 4. Even now, on the street, ladies ask me when I’m done. I will come back to host him.”
However, it was also a much-discussed style, and it revolved around the most heinous crimes.
“That’s why at some point I said enough: I didn’t want to be associated with crime alone, I didn’t want to be ‘the one on the crime news’. So I decided to leave and do something else, with a risk.”
According to the Rai tables, it was awarded.
“In every project I want to bring my own way of telling stories. With the passage of time, I judged myself very strictly, but with the lessons that life had taught me, I learned not to pity myself too much, to make my own mistakes, and not to blame myself.
He has been in open contradiction to Franco Di Mare for years.
“Daria Benardi asked me to do it “Rai3 sends me” She remained there for five years until he took over as director. Of course the network director wants to change, but don’t keep me as channel leader until the last day, when you know he can’t find anything else to do. With him, I found myself without a job. And to think that together we have made Afghanistan on excellent terms. Then, for some reason, he decided to declare war on me, as if it was his obsession. He also demanded that I not go as a guest to anyone, and invited everyone, saying not to invite me. The only one who didn’t scare him was Guardi.
The chapter of “Boy Fostery” has arrived.
“A difficult programme, with so many records, which we both tried to update, I think we succeeded. I owe a lot to Guardi. And in general, in the end, Di Mare did me a favor.
Other people to say thank you?
“Mintana.” and Sposini, who was like a father to me: in the early days, when I was in Rome, I went to sleep at his house. He took me under his wing. Mentana was the manager over, he questioned you. Before he sent me to Afghanistan, where I stayed for two months, he asked me to tell him the limits. For me he remains the best of the best: I admired his tireless ability and his unparalleled quick-thinking. She gave me a chance when no one else did. Over the years we have also argued, but every time I see him there remains a kind of awe in me, even today.’
Did you then speak to Ciarelli?
“When I arrived at Al-Rai, I was the competitor. So in the beginning there was a great coldness. Then I sent her a plant and she said thanks: We have signed this botanical peace. However, I find it very good.
Dreams for the future?
“My dream was to come back to present a program with a different alternative story about the world around us. The new Rai allows me to do that and I am grateful for that. In the future, I would also like to explore publishing: there is a great desire to know and get information.”
Are you satisfied?
“I’ve always had a conflicted relationship with my body. I don’t like seeing myself again. But I think this is a good thing, a normal life is valuable.”
What are its goals?
“I became a father very young, and then I broke up with Sarah (Fareto, Mr. DrWe are on excellent terms. Today for me, what matters is that I am always there for my children.”
“Professional web ninja. Certified gamer. Avid zombie geek. Hipster-friendly baconaholic.”
