Paolo Mancini, Professor of Sociology of Communications at Perugia University and Visiting Fellow at St Anthony's College, Oxford, gave the first seminar of this year at the Oxford Centre for Socio Legal Studies. His seminar was entitled “Beyond the Berlusconi Sense: a New Model of Politics for the 21^st Century”.

Having offered a thorough review of the specific contingencies and the historical facts which favoured the creation of Forza Italia and its victory in the 1994 election, Prof. Mancini decided to concentrate on the legal framework which regulates the relationship between media and politics in Italy.

Once he had presented the two main pieces of regulation, the 2004 Gasparri law and the 2000 par condicio law, he decided to focus on the par condicio law, a piece of legislation which severely regulates the exposure of political parties and politicians in TV. This law applies mainly, but  not exclusively, during elections. Among its main prescriptions, par condicio bans TV political advertising on national networks and establishes rigid limitations to electoral broadcasting during the electoral campaign, by imposing that all the competitors should have the same amount of time on public and commercial networks. It also establishes a strict control on journalistic fairness and bans the publication of survey results in the last 15 days before the election day as well as the presence of politicians on TV shows during the election campaigns. 

Prof. Mancini was very clear in outlining the reasons why par condicio does not work. He emphasised how it only applies to TV and to specific TV transmissions. Moreover, he argued that the time control which characterises par condicio only cares about one and certainly not the only possible variables the legislator should keep an eye on. He very clearly stated that "because of conflict of interests and the low level of journalistic autonomy, par condicio represents a limitation to press freedom".

The large audience present at the event asked questions which allowed Mancini to elaborate on his thoughts. Although he objects theoretically to par condicio, Prof. Mancini agrees that it would be hard to have a much better law under the current Parliament. However, he is still worried that under this law Italian journalists will not be able to develop a new, more autonomous ethos. Whatever one may think about par condicio, it is clear that, until that happens, it will be hard to have true independence in the field.