It's difficult to find any mention of him in publications or broadcast media.
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| Matteo Salvini |
In the past, Salvini was known as a sarcastic commentator on everything from Ukraine to renewable energy. What happened to this overflowing Salvini? A lot of people have been taken aback by the media's (apparent) quiet over the previous several days. Salvini's "generousness cannot always lead to him becoming the target," according to certain speculations that are "close to him," therefore it's not a big deal. Since his humiliating trip to Poland, Vladimir Putin has been careful to avoid the media and cameras as much as possible, and the secretary's loyalists haven't been able to escape his newfound aversion to public appearances, which has led to a noticeable shift in the leader's tone and behaviour. According to Wojciech Bakun, "come with me to the border to criticise Putin" was a request he had not received. At that exact instant, something went wrong.
How can you explain the former Minister of the Interior's bizarre media diet? "It's his technique," a party insider told the news organisations. In this situation, it's best to keep your identity hidden. No benefit can be derived from engaging in this activity. There are moments when the Northern League's leader succumbs to temptation. Yesterday, when he entered the Palazzo Madama to cast a vote of confidence in Draghi, he was confronted by legislative reporters. "Let me join the Senate else they claim I'm not going to vote because Putin begs me to..." he said, pausing briefly.
There's been little doubt about it: the media's low profile has been obvious for some time. "The League's federal council has come to an end. There's no way to get in "At Botteghe Oscure, the Carroccio's headquarters in Rome, was a note from the Salvini team issued ten days ago to journalists who were awaiting their turn to speak to Salvini. Despite the presence of cameras and reporters, the League's leader stepped out from the rear of the room to avoid answering questions. Regardless of how you feel about his political views, his face always freely puts it (goes) there. This is strange for someone like him.
It's difficult to find any mention of him in publications or broadcast media. Two weeks ago, we had a lengthy chat with Bruno Vespa at the Fair in Verona, Italy. Aside from the radio (Isoradio and Radio Libertà ) and a videoconference with a conference in Catania on EU money for the south, the direct social networks - one of its strong features - have been absent for some time. Silvio Berlusconi met with Salvini twice, the first time as a guest of the Villa Gernetto party on 19 March to "celebrate" the union of Forza Italia founder Matteo Salvini and deputy Marta Fascina, and the second time in Arcore to discuss future appointments in light of the upcoming municipal elections. Salvini stood out for this. Low-key, downright low-key.
The words spoken during the day remain etched in my mind. Someone got their calculator out and began to add and subtract. There were more than 100 remarks made in the first two weeks of the Ukraine conflict. Then just approximately 10 throughout the course of the next twenty days. After the folly in Poland, everything changed globally. No, it appeared at all hours of the day and night, morning, noon, and night. Being there was the most crucial thing. Mattino 5 and press conference, Network 4, live on Facebook, Instagram, and evening talk show. There is no "physical" presence in social media (it seems like a paradox but the strength of the Northern League leader on Facebook over the years has been to create a direct relationship with followers that is almost physical with the mediation of social media managers masked to perfection). The center-right approach of the Quirinale elections (it seems like a lifetime ago, although it was only two months ago) proven to be a disaster for the coalition, so there is no insane pinwheel of words and press points.
What's this, a plan? It's possible that this was a last-minute decision. For a brief period of time, it is possible. "Beast" is alive and well, and Salvini has resorted to the great "classic" posts in this complicated phase: posts on "resources" involved in serious news stories, on Covid, on Roma fields, on the new stadiums in Milan (and Inter) and on flat tax and electricity and gas bills. "We cling to certainties," Salvini writes. Once again, he's going back to the old ways: publishing a mashup newspaper with a little bit of everything with the help of his friends. It's beyond the pale of ridicule. The first priority is to stay out of trouble. In the case of the conflict in the Ukraine, it's better to be quiet than to speak out. Because it is technically expected of people who work in politics, it is always the wisest course of action when you have nothing of value to offer.
A long time has gone since those spring 2019 protests, when he occupied the squares everywhere, as owner of the Viminale. Salvini's physical immersions among "his of him" people, in places where the League was not even present until the other day and where polls were always positive, up to around 35%. As a result, the first administration led by former Prime Minister Antonio Conte was brought down in the middle of August. In the beginning of a string of terrible choices (if you look at the ubiquitous polls, which now give the League just over 17 percent). Until the very end, that of reducing media engagement. As a matter of course rather than a deliberate decision.
The author Andrea Maggiolo is an Italian journalist.