Rai CEO Roberto Sergio and Director
General Giampaolo Rossi on Friday defended the State
broadcaster's coverage of the second round of France's
parliamentary elections last weekend, amid a row over news
channel Rainews24's allegedly failure to give sufficient
attention to a left-wing alliance coming first.
"The attention and commitment with which Rai journalists
followed last week's French elections, just as they follow major
current events on a daily basis, from Ukraine to Israel, are
proof of how the public-service broadcaster is faithful to its
task of informing the public and providing tools to interpret
our times, regardless of pointless, specious polemics," Sergio
and Rossi said.
"Our recognition and that of the company goes to Rai's
journalists and all those who contribute to the quality and
success of Rai's news".
The opposition centre-left Democratic Party (PD) said it was
outrageous that a live broadcast from a local festival had taken
precedence over the French elections in a news bulletin on
Sunday evening and called on Rainews24 Director Paolo Petrecca
to quit.
"Rainews24's alibi is fake: on the channel directed by Petrecca,
the French elections were outclassed by a provincial festival of
which, lo and behold, the director himself was a guest at," said
PD media chief Sandro Ruotolo.
"Petrecca must resign, this is just the latest one of his
mistakes, which have led the editorial team to lose trust in
him.
"We thank 'Telemeloni' for showing us every day that the reform
of Rai governance can no longer be postponed".
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