Avanti! (Italian newspaper)
Encyclopedia
Avanti! is an Italian
daily newspaper
, born as the official voice of the Italian Socialist Party
, published since December 25, 1896. It took its name from its German
counterpart Vorwärts
.
, its direction moved to Milan
in 1911. While it advocated neutrality
on the wake of World War I
(which it viewed as an imperialist
conflict), the paper was becoming infused with the militarist
and irredentist
attitudes of its editor at the time, future Fascist
leader Benito Mussolini
(who had risen to prominence as an opponent of Filippo Turati
during the Italo-Turkish War
). Mussolini's dissent caused his ousting from the party, Avanti!s direction being taken over by Giacinto Menotti Serrati
, Mussolini then started his own paper Il Popolo d'Italia
with Syndicalist
and Republican dissidents from the Socialist Party.
The paper quarters were set on fire by Mussolini's Blackshirts
on April 15, 1919, and it was banned by the government in 1926. From that point on, Avanti! was issued as a weekly, and was edited in exile – first in Paris
and then in Zürich
, at the Ristorante Cooperativo
.
With Mussolini's first fall in 1943, the paper returned to Italy. However, its circulation was drastically curtailed due to changes in political options after World War II
. After losing its popularity, Avanti! ceased to be a respectful newspaper merely becoming a party-newspaper of the Italian Socialist Party
(PSI).
s of Bettino Craxi
(which he signed with the pen name
Ghino di Tacco
). During the Craxi management however, the party underwent an expensive modernisation project involving billions of liras. However such project and the management of the last director Roberto Viletti left the party with debts amounting to 40 billions of liras. In 1992, the PSI was hit by a series of corruption scandals and Viletti conditioned by Bettino Craxi made sure L'Avanti! supported and defended the PSI. This behaviour showed the political nature of the newspaper which by 1993 only managed to sell 15,000 copied a day, far from the golden days of the 1980s. Viletti resigned in October 1992 been replaced by a more neutral Francesco Gozzano. The situation was however out of control since the end of 1992 with the electoral defeat of the PSI in the local elections.
In May 1993, Gozzano failed to pay the workers of the paper who in turn refused to work. The PSI, who had since 1896 financed and safeguarded the newspaper failed not only to help the latter but left L'avanti! to its catastrophic fate. In fact in August 1993, L'avanti! came to an end. A series of fund-raising events were organised but the newspaper failed to revive. The company in charge of the newspaper Nuovo Editrice L'avanti! was formally decleared bankrupt in March 1994 after the electoral defeat of the Italian Socialist Party who failed to gain a minimum of 3%. The fact that the paper was a political newspaper and the influence of the Craxi in a way contributed to its fall when the PSI was hit by heavy corruption scandals.
company International Press created a daily paper with the name of L'Avanti!. However, with many financial difficulties the paper closed down.
After the American attempt, in 2003 Fabrizio Cicchitto
and other former socialists re-constructed L'Avanti!. Although this Avanti! is formally neutral its ex-director was a close friend of another former socialist Gianni De Michelis
secretary of the New Italian Socialist Party. The New PSI, in coalition with the centre-right, is an antagonist of the Socialists who found home in the centre-left coalition led by the Italian Democratic Socialists
create an opposing weekly paper with the name of "Avanti della Domenica" which however ran out of funds and closed soon after.
In 2006, Fabio Ranucci becomes director and quickly defines the paper an independent "socialist" newspaper of information. However with the re-composition of the small often tiny socialist political formations into a new Socialist Party the paper strongly came associated with the latter.
The paper which lacks the structural and financial means of the old L'Avanti still manages to survive and like the old paper is associated with the modern-day Italian Socialist Party, although with more independence and neutrality.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
daily newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
, born as the official voice of the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
, published since December 25, 1896. It took its name from its German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
counterpart Vorwärts
Vorwärts
Vorwärts was the central organ of the Social Democratic Party of Germany published daily in Berlin from 1891 to 1933 by decision of the party's Halle Congress, as the successor of Berliner Volksblatt, founded in 1884....
.
History
First housed in RomeRome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, its direction moved to Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 1911. While it advocated neutrality
Neutral country
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
on the wake of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
(which it viewed as an imperialist
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
conflict), the paper was becoming infused with the militarist
Militarism
Militarism is defined as: the belief or desire of a government or people that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests....
and irredentist
Italia irredenta
Italian irredentism was an Italian Irredentist movement that aimed at the unification of all ethnically Italian peoples....
attitudes of its editor at the time, future Fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
leader Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
(who had risen to prominence as an opponent of Filippo Turati
Filippo Turati
Filippo Turati was an Italian sociologist, poet and Socialist politician.-Early life:Born in Canzo, province of Como, he graduated in law at the University of Bologna in 1877, and participated in the Scapigliatura movement with the most important artists of the period in Milan, publishing poetry...
during the Italo-Turkish War
Italo-Turkish War
The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War was fought between the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Italy from September 29, 1911 to October 18, 1912.As a result of this conflict, Italy was awarded the Ottoman provinces of Tripolitania, Fezzan, and...
). Mussolini's dissent caused his ousting from the party, Avanti!s direction being taken over by Giacinto Menotti Serrati
Giacinto Menotti Serrati
Giacinto Menotti Serrati was an Italian communist politician. He was born in Spotorno, near Savona and died in Asso, near Como....
, Mussolini then started his own paper Il Popolo d'Italia
Il Popolo d'Italia
Il Popolo d'Italia , was an Italian newspaper founded by Benito Mussolini on November 15, 1914, as a result of his split with the Italian Socialist Party. Il Popolo d'Italia ran until July 24, 1943 and became the foundation for the Fascist movement in Italy after World War I...
with Syndicalist
Syndicalism
Syndicalism is a type of economic system proposed as a replacement for capitalism and an alternative to state socialism, which uses federations of collectivised trade unions or industrial unions...
and Republican dissidents from the Socialist Party.
The paper quarters were set on fire by Mussolini's Blackshirts
Blackshirts
The Blackshirts were Fascist paramilitary groups in Italy during the period immediately following World War I and until the end of World War II...
on April 15, 1919, and it was banned by the government in 1926. From that point on, Avanti! was issued as a weekly, and was edited in exile – first in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and then in Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, at the Ristorante Cooperativo
Ristorante Cooperativo
The Ristorante Cooperativo, colloquially known as Coopi, is a restaurant in Zürich, Switzerland, known for its association with 20th century left-wing political figures as well as the anti-fascist, trade union and Italian immigrant movements in Switzerland.The restaurant's roots are in the Società...
.
With Mussolini's first fall in 1943, the paper returned to Italy. However, its circulation was drastically curtailed due to changes in political options after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After losing its popularity, Avanti! ceased to be a respectful newspaper merely becoming a party-newspaper of the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
(PSI).
The Fall
It was to keep a certain notoriety, notably increased in the 1980s - with the analytical editorialEditorial
An opinion piece is an article, published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about the subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals.-Editorials:...
s of Bettino Craxi
Bettino Craxi
Benedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
(which he signed with the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
Ghino di Tacco
Ghino di Tacco
Ghinotto di Tacco, called Ghino, was an outlaw in thirteenth century Italy. He was born in the latter half of the thirteenth century in La Fratta, which is now part of Sinalunga in the Province of Siena...
). During the Craxi management however, the party underwent an expensive modernisation project involving billions of liras. However such project and the management of the last director Roberto Viletti left the party with debts amounting to 40 billions of liras. In 1992, the PSI was hit by a series of corruption scandals and Viletti conditioned by Bettino Craxi made sure L'Avanti! supported and defended the PSI. This behaviour showed the political nature of the newspaper which by 1993 only managed to sell 15,000 copied a day, far from the golden days of the 1980s. Viletti resigned in October 1992 been replaced by a more neutral Francesco Gozzano. The situation was however out of control since the end of 1992 with the electoral defeat of the PSI in the local elections.
In May 1993, Gozzano failed to pay the workers of the paper who in turn refused to work. The PSI, who had since 1896 financed and safeguarded the newspaper failed not only to help the latter but left L'avanti! to its catastrophic fate. In fact in August 1993, L'avanti! came to an end. A series of fund-raising events were organised but the newspaper failed to revive. The company in charge of the newspaper Nuovo Editrice L'avanti! was formally decleared bankrupt in March 1994 after the electoral defeat of the Italian Socialist Party who failed to gain a minimum of 3%. The fact that the paper was a political newspaper and the influence of the Craxi in a way contributed to its fall when the PSI was hit by heavy corruption scandals.
Heirs of Avanti!
In 1996, an AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
company International Press created a daily paper with the name of L'Avanti!. However, with many financial difficulties the paper closed down.
After the American attempt, in 2003 Fabrizio Cicchitto
Fabrizio Cicchitto
Fabrizio Cicchitto is an Italian politician.-Career:Fabrizio Cicchitto entered politics during the earlier 1960s, supporting the Marxist left wing of Riccardo Lombardi in the Italian Socialist Party and then becoming secretary of the party's youth organization...
and other former socialists re-constructed L'Avanti!. Although this Avanti! is formally neutral its ex-director was a close friend of another former socialist Gianni De Michelis
Gianni De Michelis
Giovanni De Michelis is an Italian politician.-Biography:De Michelis was born in Venice.His political experience started with the Italian Socialist Party, where he was elected to the municipal council of Venice. He got elected for the first time to the Italian Parliament in 1976 and was elected...
secretary of the New Italian Socialist Party. The New PSI, in coalition with the centre-right, is an antagonist of the Socialists who found home in the centre-left coalition led by the Italian Democratic Socialists
Italian Democratic Socialists
The Italian Democratic Socialists were a small social-democratic political party in Italy. Led by Enrico Boselli, the party was the direct continuation of the Italian Socialists, the legal successor of the historical Italian Socialist Party...
create an opposing weekly paper with the name of "Avanti della Domenica" which however ran out of funds and closed soon after.
In 2006, Fabio Ranucci becomes director and quickly defines the paper an independent "socialist" newspaper of information. However with the re-composition of the small often tiny socialist political formations into a new Socialist Party the paper strongly came associated with the latter.
The paper which lacks the structural and financial means of the old L'Avanti still manages to survive and like the old paper is associated with the modern-day Italian Socialist Party, although with more independence and neutrality.
Notable contributors
- Gaetano ArféGaetano ArféGaetano Arfé was an Italian politician, historian, and journalist. From 1966 to 1976 he published the Avanti!, the official newspaper of the Italian Socialist Party, whom he represented in the European parliament from 1979 to 1984...
- Fabrizio CicchittoFabrizio CicchittoFabrizio Cicchitto is an Italian politician.-Career:Fabrizio Cicchitto entered politics during the earlier 1960s, supporting the Marxist left wing of Riccardo Lombardi in the Italian Socialist Party and then becoming secretary of the party's youth organization...
- Bettino CraxiBettino CraxiBenedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
- Antonio GramsciAntonio GramsciAntonio Gramsci was an Italian writer, politician, political philosopher, and linguist. He was a founding member and onetime leader of the Communist Party of Italy and was imprisoned by Benito Mussolini's Fascist regime...
- Oddino MorgariOddino MorgariOddino Morgari was an Italian socialist journalist and politician.-Early life:Initially a Mazzinian radical, he became a member of the Italian Socialist Party in 1891, and was elected leader of its local section in Turin the following year...
- Christian RakovskyChristian RakovskyChristian Rakovsky was a Bulgarian socialist revolutionary, a Bolshevik politician and Soviet diplomat; he was also noted as a journalist, physician, and essayist...
- Filippo TuratiFilippo TuratiFilippo Turati was an Italian sociologist, poet and Socialist politician.-Early life:Born in Canzo, province of Como, he graduated in law at the University of Bologna in 1877, and participated in the Scapigliatura movement with the most important artists of the period in Milan, publishing poetry...