A Milan court has ordered a journalist to pay Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni 5,000 euros (approximately equal to 456,996.91 INR) in damages for making fun of her in a social media post, according to Reuters.
Giulia Cortese, the journalist, also received a suspended fine of 1,200 euros for what was described as "body shaming" remarks she made regarding Meloni's height on Twitter in October 2021.
Following a confrontation between the two ladies on social media, Meloni filed a lawsuit against Cortese.
Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party was in opposition at the time, took exception when Cortese published a mocked-up photo of her with a picture of the late fascist leader Benito Mussolini in the background.
Cortese responded with further tweets including one that translates as “you don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2 metres (4 feet) tall. I can’t even see you.”
Meloni’s height is given as between 1.58 m and 1.63 m on various media websites.
Cortese can appeal against the sentence, and Meloni’s lawyer said the prime minister would donate to charity any damages she eventually receives.
A high number of lawsuits brought against journalists was cited this year by Reporters Without Borders, which relegated Italy five places to 46th in its 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
Meloni is not new to taking journalists to court. Last year a Rome court fined best-selling author Roberto Saviano 1,000 euros plus legal expenses after he insulted her on television in 2021 over her hardline stance on illegal immigration.
(With Reuters inputs)
