Canale 5 apologizes for comment
Berlusconi's network was secretly filming judge
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Canale 5, part of Berlusconi's Mediaset TV group, began secretly filming magistrate Raimondo Mesiano as he went about his business just days after he ordered Fininvest to pay €750 million in compensation to a rival company over the acquisition of a controlling stake in publishing house Mondadori in 1991.
The results were beamed to millions on the "Mattino 5" program, accompanied by a voiceover that ridiculed Mesiano for his "extravagance" and "eccentric behavior," his "impatience" and, most bizarrely, the fact that he wore turquoise socks.
Mesiano appeared to have done nothing other than go for a shave and smoke cigarettes outside the barbershop while waiting for his turn.
At the weekend, CSM, the national magistrates' org, expressed outrage that the judge had been secretly shadowed during his leisure time, probably in breach of privacy regulations.
On Oct. 19, Mediaset director of news Claudio Brachino apologized, after a fashion, for the broadcast, saying it "wasn't a masterpiece. I therefore apologize to Mesiano and will ensure that these images are not broadcast again."
Tellingly, even some of Berlusconi's political allies and Mediaset insiders said they were appalled by the report.
Enrico Mentana, the journalist and former director of Canale 5, said, "This was an action designed to offend someone who made an enemy of the company (Mediaset) simply by doing his job."
He called on Mediaset prexy and senior Berlusconi lieutenant Fedele Confalonieri "to get a grip on things."
