8,200,000 Italian internet users (May 2001)
37% total users women
+ 30 minute increase per user
7 p.m. ‘internet rush hour’
Italians used the web to get informed for May elections, according to Nielsen reports. But they weren’t looking for offical/party information–the most heavily trafficked sites were news-related (3.5 million unique users) while about half that amount was seen on institutional sites.
1 law, requiring “professional journalists” on all info-based web sites
18.789 professional journalists (members of Italy’s Order)
47,749 associate members of Order
39,736 signers of petition against statute
A new law requiring all web sites in Italy (or transmitting to Italy) with “regularly updated information” to have a staff member enrolled in the national order of journalists is a powerful swipe at the new economy by the old guard.
Italy is one of the few countries where journalists belong to an order-like doctors and lawyers-and represent an equally powerful lobby. It’s not simply a matter of having a staff member sign up for a press card. Getting an associate press card requires demonstrating at least two years of paid work, while becoming a professional journalist also requires passing a bar exam.
“I find it offensive and humiliating because it deprives me of my right to freedom of speechSince I’m not a professional journalist, I won’t be able to write another single word or have an opinion about anything,” says one forum post on the Order site.
As a zoomata reader pointed out, despite the attention of electronic media, not much has been said in the Italian press. Then again, there’s a monopoly to protect.
Related resources:
An extreme example-even this erotic diary would require a professional editor and registration in a tribunal…
www.clarence.com/contents/tabu/paola/nuovo
65% parliament members failed written driving test
86% true/false questions wrong
4 wrong answers=failed test
629 cars (with driver) available for Ministry of Transport officials
5,097 cars (with driver) available for Red Cross officials
3,404 cars (with driver) available for Ministry of Justice officials
0 (est.) probable number of parliamentarians driving own cars
Italy’s leading auto magazine Quattroruote put 100 parliamentarians to the driving test-the majority failed miserably. Some, like Transport Minister Pier Luigi Bersani, were wise enough not to take the magazine’s quiz-everyone knows these folks don’t actually drive. The chauffeur-driven sedans for VIPs, known colloquially as “auto blu” (favored models Lancia, Mercedes and BMW are rigorously navy in color) are synonymous with luxury and abuse of power.
Romano Prodi, to his credit often seen on bike or campaigning by bus, tried reduce government spending by auctioning off 160,000 of these cars in 1997, but the proposal languished.
The Northern League, always ready to point out the wasteful spending of southerners recently “exposed” Roman mayor Francesco Rutelli, using his “auto blu” with driver for campaign purposes.
Related resources:
http://bluauto.it/
Everyday folks like the rich & powerful: rent a chauffeur-driven “auto blu”
www.lancia.com/modelli/k/default.htm
a typical “auto blu” model
13 million Italians smoke
90,000 Tobacco-related deaths, yearly
19.3% to 21.4% Increase in percentage of smokers who quit (1996-98)
from 14.8% to 15.9 % Increase in no. of female smokers 14-24 (1997-98)
$1.50 USD (Lit. 3.000) Fine for smoking in public places
Almost one-third of Italians smoke, some are trying to quit while young women light up more frequently than ever. The government is threatening to pass a more stringent anti-smoking measure which would confine smoking to private homes. The problem, as anyone who has spent time in Italy knows, isn’t only a legal matter. Smoking has been banned in public places (hospitals, theaters, schools, nightclubs and on public transportation) since 1975, but public authorities are want to enforce the regulations. Hard to blame them, the measly fine is not exactly a deterrent.
* Source: La lega Italiana contro i tumori (Italian League for the Fight against Cancer). Research presented for national stop-smoking day, May 31, 2000. www.legatumori.it
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$150 million (300 billion) state revenue increase from price hike
$50-150 proposed fine for smoking in public places
$1.50 (Lit. 3.000 ) current fine for smoking in public places
1 new anti-smoking law, back to the drawing board
When the Italian parliament dissolved March 9 2001, it left at least one piece of unfinished business: a stringent new anti-smoking measure. Smoking was banned in public places (hospitals, theaters, schools, nightclubs and on public transportation) in 1975, but public authorities rarely enforce the regulations. Hard to blame them, the measly fine is not exactly a deterrent. The new law, in addition to heftier fines, proposed “cigarette police,” a person appointed by the organization to fine people lighting up where they shouldn’t. Health minister Umberto Veronesi’s proposal was criticized as an “attack” on smokers, who felt they were going to be persecuted by the government. No worries: Italy’s state tobacco monopoly has no reason to persecute such a lucrative public. In fact, to fill government coffers, it announced a cigarette price hike yesterday-the $ .20 increase on each packet will add up to around $150 million in 2001.
Related resources:
www.ultimobanco.it
Italian non-smokers can pull a few punches at politicians with this new interactive game.
In September 2000, the Italian Post office issued the first digital signatures for individuals, formerly considered a major speed bump on the information “superstrada.”
Banking customers or businesses wishing to purchase domain names, for example, were required to either fax a signature or have a signature witnessed and authenticated. Interesting to see whether security-conscious Italians–who never mail checks and are wary of credit cards–will change their habits.
Related resources:
For more info http://web.poste.it
Italians, not a particularly patriotic bunch, have been ordered by European law to fly both the Italian flag and the flag of the European union in front of public offices and schools.
Actually, the decree was issued in 1998, but these things take time. In fact, the flags will be displayed in front of schools for the first time this month, during exams the 14th and the 21st of June 2000.
Perhaps the complicated rules didn’t help this civic cause: the Flag Person, who must be officially appointed by each school or office, has quite a job. In general, for schools the Italian flag flies on the right, the European flag on the left.
During special occasions (holidays or state visits) the far right slot is for the “visiting” country.
For public offices, however, the order is reversed– the European flag is on the right, followed by the Italian flag and the regional flag takes the place of honor.
Related resources:
For more on the Tricolore
www.fotw.stm.it/flags/it.html
Daydreams:
75% erotic
Dream erotic adventure:
27% sex with complete stranger, on the beach
15% fling with sexy coworker
Daydreams:
75% erotic
Dream erotic adventure:
27% sex with complete stranger, on the beach
15% fling with sexy coworker
Dream Object:
54.4% villa in the Tropics
9.5% a Ferrari
Dream Vacation
41.5% Polynesian islands
17.5% The moon
Italians would forgo a trip to the moon and a Ferrari in exchange for a ticket to a far-flung isle, preferably with an attractive colleague. The poll, conducted by a leading news weekly, asked 1,000 Italian men and women between the ages of 25-50 what they dream about.One small surprise: making a micro-comeback as the top “dream woman” was long-forgotten 36-year -old TV movie queen Francesca Dellera, an actress more noted for sending her plastic surgeon into early retirement than for her on-screen abilities.
http://ssmax.supereva.it/Dellera/francesca01.htm
One Francesca Fan page
Transport minister Pietro Lunardi made his mark on the new administration by proposing to raise freeway speed limits to 99 mph (160 kph) as Italians get ready to hit the road for summer vacation. Critics point to 1999 ISAT statistics that attributed 26,770 accidents and 1,430 deaths from excessive speeding. Current Italian speed limit on the autostrada is 80 mph.
Related resources
www.radio24.it/newsletter/out/newsletter_editoriale.htm
The ongoing debate…
White storks, once common in the swampy areas of Lombardy and Piedmont, became a rarity around 300 years ago. Italy’s League for Bird Protection (LIPU) is trying to help them make a comeback by “seducing” the birds, symbol of fertility and love, into artificial nests. The initiative started after attentive birdwatchers noticed storks trying to nest, but were often discouraged by farmers. Today, over 60 pairs have successfully nested thanks to the Stork Center in Racconigi (Cuneo). What convinces a stork to stay? A bit of healthy voyeurisim: the artificial nests are topped with two decoys of birds in courtship. The League announced more love nests will be planted areas surrounding Milan and Lodi.
Related resources:
The association also organizes vacations in Italy’s wildlife reserves for adults and children.
Here’s the 2001 calendar.
www.lipu.it/Fp_ea.htm